Drakan: The Order Reborn
by Ade1
Summary: The story of a young female warrior who awakens a sleeping dragon that was once part of a long lost age many centuries ago. The story follows their developing friendship as they venture on a quest to defeat the evil forces that have invaded the world...


Drakan: The Order Reborn

About: -

The unique story about a young female warrior who awakens a sleeping dragon that was once part of a long lost age many centuries ago. The story follows their developing friendship as they venture on a quest to defeat the evil forces that have invaded the land and to restore world order. The story has a few writers from the Drakan community, which are detailed in the credits below.

Credits: -

Arokh's Twin (main writer and editor)

Assassin (writer)

Dark Master (Suggestions and help)

The Darklord (writer)

UltraHolyDragon (writer)

Draco (writer)

ErugeBoren (writer)

Nin (writer)

Orcanos (writer)

And of course, Sony Computer Entertainment, Psygnosis and Surreal Software who made the games and the world of Drakan possible.

Please note, before continuing further that this story contains lots of fantasy violence and descriptions of human suffering and torture. There are also some mild sexual references and the odd bad language. Hence the story is only suitable for mature readers in my opinion.

**Contents**

**Prologue**

**Chapter One: Ruined Village**

**Chapter Two: The Awakening of a Legend**

**Chapter Three: Wartock Canyons**

**Chapter Four: Grimstone Mines**

**Chapter Five: Snowy Grotto**

**Chapter Six: The Eastern Archipelago**

**Chapter Seven: Ruins of Alwarren**

**Chapter Eight: Test of the Tower**

**Chapter Nine: A Little too Late?**

**Chapter Ten: Volcano of Death**

**Chapter Eleven: New Worlds**

**Chapter Twelve: Strange Voices**

**Chapter Thirteen: The Beginning of a New Adventure**

**Chapter Fourteen: The Swamp of Peril**

**Chapter Fifteen: The Bringing back of the Dead**

**Chapter Sixteen: Unexpected Weather**

**Chapter Seventeen: Treading on unfamiliar Ground**

**Chapter Eighteen: Enemy Unknown**

**Chapter Nineteen: Imprisoned!**

**Chapter Twenty: Trouble at the Palace**

**Chapter Twenty One: A Familiar Place**

**Chapter Twenty Two: Double Dragon**

**Chapter Twenty Three: Enemy at the Gates**

**Epilogue **

**For the latest version of this story including pictures to accompany the textgo to **

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**Prologue****  
**  
"Rynn, over here! I've found it!" exclaimed Delon excitedly. His older sister, Rynn came over to where the young boy was examining a short blade. She ruffled his hair and went to take the blade from him. "Well done, Delon. It was well hidden, I'm surprised you found it amongst all those stones."  
Delon smiled back and together they exited the small cave by the path side and began their journey back to their village. It was already dark and the air was becoming chilly; the pair was only wearing thin leather tunics, as it was surprisingly mild for that time of the year.

Looking up at the sky, two of Drakan's four moons were visible which were slowly being obscured by cloud. Their light weak but enough to enable the woman and her brother to find their way around.  
"I wonder if we will see snow this week" Rynn suggested pulling her tunic tighter as the cold mountain air sent shivers down her spine. Wind rustled gently through the nearby pine trees as the distant storm came closer adding to the already dropping temperature.

"I hope so" Delon answered just as a distant Wartock war cry could be heard echoing through the winding valley.  
"Wartocks!" Rynn hissed glancing up the path which led further into the mountains. "Come on, we had better get going and get you to bed" she continued absently kicking a stone at a pile of rocks.

The pair continued downwards on the winding mountain path that led back to their village, the only one for 20 miles and supposedly once the former hometown of the legendary warrior Heron and his bonded dragon, Arokh. That is if one were to believe that sort of thing; Rynn was very sceptical about the Order and never paid attention to the legends and stories that accompanied it.  
The chimney stacks of some houses were just visible as they neared the eastern end of the village.  
"Wasn't it great when I found the blade? I mean Atimar will be pleased that we have found it again! Delon said with excitement.  
"I think Atimar is running out of places to hide it, you are getting too good" his sister answered with a smile.  
"Yeah, maybe ill make a good hunter one day! Oh-Oh!" He stopped short in mid conversation, the path ahead suddenly blocked by a group of Orcs led by a pair of Wartocks.

The Orcs immediately went into an attack position; their leader giving out a loud war cry and they quickly advanced on the two humans taking them by surprise.  
"Quick, get behind me!" Rynn commanded as she drew her sword just in time to block an attack from one of the group. She swung the sword around in an arc slicing the creature in the arm, which howled in agony dropping his weapon. His companion tried to take a swing at Rynn with his axe but she darted out of the way and spun round behind him just as two more came in. With one sweep of her sword, she decapitated the two orcs stood in front of her but the wounded Orc came up behind her and knocked her down to the ground with his club grinning triumphantly.

Taking her sword and leaving Rynn for dead, the remaining troops surrounded Delon and took him away screaming and kicking in protest.  
Rynn's vision went hazy and she blacked out...

**Chapter One: Ruined Village  
**  
Rynn got to her feet slowly and winced in pain as she put her left foot onto the ground. Looking down, she could see no wounds but it still hurt her to put her full weight onto it. Glancing up into the sky, she could see that the cloud had disappeared unveiling a jet-black sky illuminated only by the countless stars and the twin moons. She yawned and figured by the position of the moons she must have been out for at least a few hours.  
"Delon!" she shouted suddenly hoping that her brother would reply.  
He did not.  
Rynn briefly looked around the area where she and her brother were ambushed only a short time ago hoping that she wouldn't find him dead but half-hoping she would find him injured; health vials can cure any ailment except severed limbs. Suddenly she spotted something shiny in the grass.  
_Atimar's Blade!_ She hurriedly picked up the blade and began to make her way back to the village calling Delon's name as she went.

As Rynn neared the village she could see something was horribly wrong. Half the houses were burnt to the ground and some were demolished, no one was to be seen. After the initial shock, she began to run towards the village square beyond which her home lay near the coast. "Delon!" she shouted again, hoping to hear his voice but it was fruitless. It soon became obvious that everyone was either dead or missing; the village was littered with mutilated corpses at every turn. Seemingly no-one had been spared.

"Why?" she cried to herself as she saw her neighbour impaled on a spear; his lower body completely missing. Again she shouted for Delon but there was no reply.  
"Rynn! Over here, quick" a hoarse voice unexpectedly sounded from nearby.  
A survivor! Rynn swivelled round on the heel of her foot to see Atimar lying by a house with a spear though his shoulder and obviously in a lot of pain. Although not related, Atimar was like an uncle to Rynn and Delon since the death of their parents when Rynn was twelve years old. He had since took care of them both and Delon always enjoyed reading the lore and history of Drakan especially seem as the village was once the home of Heron. Rynn thought the legends of the Order were just silly stories and never believed that anyone could bond with a Dragon but she never told this to Atimar, as she did not want to insult him. Atimar was a firm believer of the Order and taught the myth to the village people during his Sunday service in the temple.

Rynn's face fell when she saw the sight of her injured friend and she hurried over to him ignoring her pain and knelt down at his side so that he did not have to raise his head to look at her.  
"My God Atimar! What happened!" she exclaimed.  
"Wartocks, led by a Dark Knight" he coughed and continued "Took all of the children including Delon... unspeakable evil"  
"What have we done to cause this outrage?" Rynn said furiously.  
"This is no ordinary Wartock raid, Rynn" Atimar said gravely with pain in his voice. His old wrinkled face expressionless and blank; the face of a dying man. "Its something far more dangerous and is a threat to humanity. Only the Order can save us from this evil" He coughed and slumped over slightly.  
"That's a myth... Isn't it?" she asked.  
Atimar did not reply but shook his head slowly.  
"You need the book... Cough... get it from my home... the book of the Order. You need the key to get into my house... An Orc stole it... I last saw him heading towards the tavern."  
"The book you always take with you to service?" Rynn replied, remembering the green book the old man always carried with him.  
"Yes, look, listen Rynn... I don't have much longer to live... cough.. Take the book to the temple and place it on the altar... You will..." Atimar's voice faded as he drew his last breath and collapsed onto the stone steps.  
"NO!" cried Rynn "Don't worry Atimar, I will avenge this at all costs and I will not stop until each one of those filthy beasts lay dead" she shouted raising the blade she held into the air.

Rynn looked around the village, a scavenger hissed nearby. She quickly ran into a nearby house to take this in. Could the Order really have existed? What is important about the book? What is this thing that 'I will see'?  
All of these questions went through her mind. She sighed and picked up a nearby health potion and drank it instantly curing the pain in her foot and regaining her strength. The first thing she needed was a weapon as Atimar's blade was not much use against an adult Wartock. Leaving the house, she turned towards the path that led to her home.  
"Ill be back to bury you my friend" she said to Atimar's body as she passed him.

An angry bellow sounded as a nearby Orc spotted Rynn, he was the one who had killed Atimar and was sat nearby overhearing the recent conversation. Rynn lunged at him with the dagger but it did minimal damage "How could have Atimar used this thing if he were attacked?" she grunted to herself as she ducked to miss a blow aimed at her head.  
She lunged upwards catching the Orc in the throat and stumbling back, choking with blood it made a final swing at Rynn hitting her in the side.  
"Damn!" she shouted as the pain hit her. She needed to get to her house quickly... it was only just down the road but the path was blocked by burning carts which were used to move supplies around the village. Carefully making her way down to and picking her way around the burning blockade she was partly overjoyed to see her house still intact and not aflame. Across from her home were a group of three Orcs smashing down the door of the opposite house and shortly after came human screams then silence. Rynn felt suddenly sick. No point in killing them yet, she would have her chance in a few moments. At least that's what she thought.

Opening the door to her house, Rynn was dismayed and angry to find it looted; nothing was left apart from broken furniture and her belongings. The weapons she had gained over the years were, of course, missing. Smashed crockery lay strewn on the floor and the remains of her food supply for the next week half eaten and squashed over the floor. The embers of the fire in the tiny one roomed house still burned at the far end from when she lit it before treasure hunting with Delon and the room was still warm. Like the majority of the other houses in the village, her home was stone built with a pointed thatched roof and had an upper floor covering most of the lower room. This small area served as a storage and sleeping area and Rynn climbed the short wooden ladder to see what she could salvage from her belongings, but as she half expected, there was nothing.

"Those creatures have even had a free meal, they've taken everything!" she said out aloud bending down to stand up a toppled over barrel.  
Hearing the group of orcs that were across from the street coming closer, she ran out of the house hoping to miss them but ran straight into their leader who jumped back in surprise. Taking advantage of this, Rynn lunged at him but missed. She tried to circle around him but suddenly the ground gave way under her feet; she was near the edge of the short cliff leading to the sea below.

Rynn slid down in the mud and rolled over out of control until she eventually came to a stop on the rocks below. Groaning in pain she looked up at the three Orcs who were jeering and waving their spears in the air.  
She ignored them "_Ill get you later_" she thought to herself as she picked herself up. She peered into the darkness; something shiny caught her eye. _Could it be? Yes, it was a sword of some description_.  
She slowly made it over to the protruding rock and picked up the blade.  
"Mithril" She said to herself as she rubbed her hand over the back of the ancient sword.  
Mithril is a strong metal, which does not rust and is known for its armour piercing properties, useful against Wartocks who generally wear thick armour. It was a good start for Rynn and she searched around the area and came across a male skeleton, obviously a warrior or pirate who had met a sticky end on the rocks. The seas around this land are littered with shipwrecks and sometimes their treasure is washed up on the rocks - a valuable income for the small village.

Picking up the three health potions that accompanied the skeleton, she drank one and put the others into her backpack and swam across the bay to search for more items washed up on the shore. The sea was very cold and she was beginning to shiver horribly from the thermal shock.

Rynn swam up to a little alcove and dragged herself up onto the rocks avoiding the sharp debris of an unfortunate ship that had been smashed during bad weather. Looking around she found a rusty old axe and looking it over, added it to her collection.  
A large cave suddenly caught her eye, which led under the village. Rynn had never noticed this cave before as it could only be seen from the sea during low tide. Finding no other way to get back to the cliff top, she entered and peered around cautiously, hoping that there was some way out at the other side, she did not fancy swimming around in the cold water for much longer.

The cave was dark but a strange blue light seemed to illuminate it from within, water could be heard dripping from the roof into puddles on the floor. A draught blew through the cave making a slight roaring noise and blowing Rynn's hair over her face.

Rynn pushed aside the hair covering one side of her face and stopped when she heard a strange noise; she as not alone in there, somebody or some_thing_ was coming towards her. Drawing her sword a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness appeared on the floor.  
"Spiders" She said to herself with disgust "I hate spiders"  
The large poisonous arachnid creatures were no match for Rynn's new weapon, she cut through them with ease as she made her way through the semidarkness. She eventually came to a large underground lake with a small rocky area on the other side. Something was over there. She had to go and investigate.

Swimming across the lake she could make out that it was another skeleton wearing some armour. Rynn carefully removed the studded leather armoured vest from the corpse and noted the fungus growing on it. Most of all, the smell. It had obviously been there a long time and smelt musty and of dead flesh.  
Rynn sighed and thought to herself "_I'm going to need this if I need protection, I might find something better later"_ as she reluctantly put the vest over her tunic.

"The cave must have another exit," she said to herself, her voice echoing in the large underground cavern. She dived into the water and made her way up the tunnel at one side of the lake until she came to a cellar filled with beer barrels that looked almost new. Lit torches were set into the walls indicating that somebody had been here recently.  
"Strange, I wonder who this belongs to?" She asked herself as she looked around, pocketing any health potions she came across.

Noticing a gate at the other side of the room, she went over and peered through. Inside was another cellar filled with beer barrels and a couple of Orcs, one completely drunk and sloshing his beer over the place as he staggered around. Opening the gate she ran the orcs through and killed the spiders that came running towards her. On her left was a key on a table. "_This must be the cellar under the tavern!_" she thought to herself as she examined the key. The name 'Atimar' was engraved into the metalwork of the steel key.  
"Yes! I've found Atimar's key, looks like your little plan has come to a sudden end" she said to the corpse of the Orc lying in a pool of his own blood on the floor.  
She turned away with a smile on her face and walked up the stone steps into the tavern.

Rynn came out just behind the bar. The village tavern, named The Red Dragon Inn, like she expected was deserted and smashed glasses and crockery lay strewn on the floor, just like in her home. The once lively place was only yesterday full of the villagers eating, drinking ale and telling each other stories in the dimly lit but cosy room. The fire, surprisingly still burning looked inviting to any weary traveller and Rynn sat down in front of it to dry her clothes.

After a short while, Rynn decided it was time to leave and glanced around the tavern she had visited so many times. Everything seemed so unreal; like a bad dream. Strangely, she realised that this would be the last time she would ever visit it again; no matter the outcome of Delon's fate, she felt that they could not return, instead seek refuge in nearby towns and villages. She got to her feet noting the painting of Heron and Arokh defeating Navaros ruined and obscenities in Orcish written across it in blood. She ventured upstairs to the rooms once occupied by travellers and traders wishing to stay the night wondering if they had left anything. Luckily they had; an invisibility potion and potion of life was found in one of the chests. Nobody had stopped to collect their belongings in the attack.  
Rynn made her way downstairs and took one last look around the main room of the Tavern and went out of the front door.

The road outside led up to the temple, sat atop a hill near a rocky outcrop by the sea overlooking the village. Rynn, instead, turned and headed back towards Atimar and towards his home which lay at the other side of the river that flowed through the centre of the village. Rynn came to a fork in the path that she knew led up to a few caves populated by scavengers; a real problem for the people of the village. With confidence in her new found weapon, she ventured forwards hoping to find anything left by unfortunate victims of the scavengers; she would need everything she could find. Rynn had never ventured more than 20 miles or so from her village and most of Drakan was unknown to her. Anything could be out there... she had heard the fokelore of passing travellers.

A hissing sound came from behind one of the rocks and a disgusting pink coloured creature emerged with razor sharp claws caked in dried blood. Its jaws were dripping with blood and saliva and its small beady eye observed Rynn with suspicion. She readied her sword just as the creature charged - straight into her outstretched sword. The scavenger roared and rolled over onto its back, legs kicking in the air then it fell silent.  
Rynn cautiously walked up to it and calmly cut off the head just in case it was playing dead; a trick often played by these disgusting but intelligent creatures. She was taking no chances.

Entering the creature's lair was, as expected human remains complete with supplies and a rusty scale mail. Rynn removed the foul smelling leather armour she was wearing and replaced it with the scale mail. It was well worn and probably wouldn't last long but she felt confident she would find more soon.  
Rynn quickly left before any more of the scavengers turned up, they were known to ambush unwary humans and wartocks.

Returning to the path, Rynn continued towards Atimar's house reaching it around half an hour later and was relieved to find it still standing. She had met some resistance on the way and encountered a Wartock killing a villager but unfortunately Rynn was unable to save him in time. The village was almost silent, only the sounds of the dying drifted through the air accompanied by the odd Wartock bellow. Walking up to the sturdy wooden door, she could see that something had been trying to make a forced entry but was unsuccessful. Smiling to herself, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the key taken from the Orc earlier knowing that she had got the upper hand of those dim-witted creatures.

The door opened on its rusting hinges with a loud creaking noise revealing a dark sparsely furnished room, the layout identical to her own home. She reached up and lit the torch on the wall which cast long flickering shadows across a large bookcase on the far wall by the side of the fire.  
"Hmm, which book is it?" Rynn mumbled as she read the titles of the books written into their spines. Some were in a language so old she couldn't understand it; these books were in pristine condition despite their age. One of the old books caught her eye, a green book looking well used and with images of dragons on the spine. Rynn pulled it from the bookcase revealing the Order's insignia on the front cover. It had to be it. She shrugged and put the book into her backpack and carefully placed Atimar's blade onto the nearby table as a sign of respect. She would not need it again and it would be relatively safe there. She took one last look around the house which she had visited many times before and headed back towards the tavern crossing another stone bridge which led to a forked path. To the left lay the main trade route into the village, which cut under the mountains by the riverside. She would need to go that way later but for now, she headed right, towards the temple.

**Chapter Two: The Awakening of a legend  
**  
The path to the temple seemed strangely quiet; the Wartocks had done their business and moved on, only the odd one or two remained to ensure no survivors could escape and find help. Little did they know that somebody _would_ do exactly that. As the temple came into view, a lone Wartock came down the path seeing Rynn and came charging at her, its battle hammer held high. Rynn readied the axe she found on the rocks and took one swing at the Wartock's arm but the rotten wood gave way and the axe blade went flying off to the side leaving Rynn holding the handle. The Wartock's face drew into a slight smile at the human's misfortune and took a downward swipe at Rynn's head just as she rolled sideways out of the way reaching for the Mithril sword as she did so. Surprised by the Human's agility, the Wartock knew this may not be an easy fight and stepped back somewhat uneasily. The human made her attack, cutting through the light armour but it did not do much damage, only a small wound. Grunting, he made another swipe but she was simply too fast for him and managed to get behind landing a neat blow to the neck. The Wartock roared and fell over clutching his neck as his lifeblood slowly drained away. He looked up. The Human was nowhere to be seen.

At the end of the muddy path, the imposing temple stood on a rocky outcrop linked to the shore by a short stone bridge. Rynn carefully made her way across looking over the edge for any potential traps or ambushes but saw nothing but waves crashing against the rocks below. She carefully pushed open the main doors of the temple and went inside, the doors closing behind with a solid crash. Thankfully, this place did not seem to have been attacked by the Orcs and the pews and various ancient tapestries that hung between the stained glass windows were still intact.

Rynn pulled out the book and walked up to the altar looking it over for any clues as to what the connection was between it and the book. There was nothing but she spotted the podium stood next to it with a recess that matched the book perfectly. Shrugging, she placed the book into the recess and waited. Suddenly, the two columns at the other side of the temple started to revolve and the floor opened up in the centre of the room revealing a secret staircase leading under the temple. Cautiously peering into the darkness, she could see lit torches below and taking a deep breath, descended down the stairs.

At first, there did not seem to be anything down there; just a long staircase descending into a pit which seemed to have no bottom due to the light. Rynn noticed a circular midsection about 20 feet down upon which sat a book resting on a short golden stand. She went to investigate and saw that the book was beautifully written with pictures of men riding dragons. Interested, she dusted it off and began to read from it; carefully turning pages with her fingertips to prevent tearing the old, already deteriorating paper.

_In the earliest times, Drakan was a world of chaos and endless struggle. It's many tribes and races were scattered, warring amongst one another in a vicious cycle of death and retribution. The two greatest races -- the elder breed of Dragons and the younger tribes of Humanity -- fought bitterly against one another. Where mankind encroached on the nesting grounds of Dragons, the great beasts razed human villages and scorched their croplands. And in further retribution, stealthy bands of men would seek to trap and kill lone Dragons wherever they could. _

This madness raged for centuries, until at last, one tiny flicker of reason shone forth. High in the central mountains of the great continent, a lone tribe of men enacted an uneasy truce with the neighbouring Dragons. Through time, this peace grew into a mutual trust, and the two tribes began to work for their common good. The strength of this alliance gradually spread to the surrounding regions, and the seeds of the first great civilisation were sown. As a symbol of the greatest virtues of this society, the two races agreed upon the pact known as The Bond. Through the magic of an artefact known as the Dragonstone, the bravest and most noble of men would join their life essence to that of a single dragon, linking the two forever as one. These Bonded formed a loose alliance known as the Order of the Flame, serving as roaming protectors and arbitrators. The Order embodied the ideals of brotherhood and co-operation upon which their society was built.

Led by the gleaming example of the Bonded, the Order of the Flame rapidly spread its influence and philosophy throughout the continent, gathering the warring races and petty kingdoms into a single great nation. For generations, this peace held fast, enforced by the formidable dragon-riders. Freed from the constant threat of warfare, their scholars turned to the study of magic, devising potent spells to alter the very land around them and mould it to their needs. Nothing, it seemed, was unattainable.

The Betrayer  
  
But as in all times, there were those whose hearts held only hatred and darkness, who longed to rule over others and destroy the Order of the Flame. Equality is by nature preventative to profit and superiority, so many were displeased with the Order's vision. Secret societies and subversive factions took shape; gradually building an invisible network of those opposed to the Order. The most malevolent of these groups would come to be known as the Dark Union - an alliance of the strongest and most influential of the Order's foes.

At last, it was a man called Navaros who would bring an end to this Golden Age. A War Mage of tremendous power and an honoured member of the Order, Navaros was in truth a member of the Dark Union's inner council. Under Navaros' direction, the Dark Union had been conducting vile experiments in genetics and forbidden magic, deep in the trackless wildlands of the eastern frontier. The discoveries made in these desolate lands were kept hidden from the world, known only to Navaros and the Inner Council.

Impatient with the bickering of the Council, and certain that the time to move against the Order had come, Navaros took matters into his own hands. Through quick and bloody decision, Navaros crowned himself as supreme leader of the Dark Union, and set his plans for the downfall of the Order of the Flame into motion. Mounting his ancient dragon, Kaeros, he gave quiet instructions to each of his lieutenants, then disappeared into the eastern waste, not to be seen again for another ten years.

Navaros' brethren within the Order, unaware of his true nature, had mourned his disappearance and many had searched for him in vain. Ten years later, when he appeared on the steps of the great Dragon Temple, he was greeted with joy and disbelief. A meeting of the city's Bonded was hurriedly called, so that all could hear Navaros' story and welcome his return. Navaros stood silently until the last of his brothers was seated. Then, with a grim smile, he uttered a Word of Power not spoken in over six hundred years, and destruction ripped through the hall.

Outside, a dense fog had risen, blanketing the streets in a dismal mist. Blinding flashes of light rippled across the city, and streams of dark, hulking shapes poured from the alleys, laying about them with blood-clotted axes and great butcher's blades. Within minutes, the streets were choked with the dead, and the air resounded with the bestial roars of the Dark Union's monstrous servants. By nightfall, the city was in ruins, and the brightest minds of the Order lay sealed in the smouldering rubble of the Dragon Temple. The Dark Wars had begun.

The Armies Gather  
  
As word of Navaros' treachery spread, the remaining cities rose up against him, and war engulfed the world. Everywhere, the agents of the Dark Union streamed to Navaros' side, cutting a swath of treachery and murder. Among them were several of the Order's greatest mages, and many of the Bonded. Spells of unimaginable destruction raged across the world, levelling cities and armies on both sides. One by one, the great achievements and marvels of the Order's golden age were ground into dust.

In his years in the waste, Navaros had amassed a nightmare army, strengthened by dark magic of his own design. The elder race of Giants, long driven into the wildlands and forgotten, had re-emerged under the Dark Union's banner. From the creatures of the wilderness, Navaros' magic had produced legions of twisted and vile monsters, which crawled and hopped at his command. Most dismaying of all were the Dark Union's shock troops -- the wartocks. Never a part of the Order, the wartocks had always been a primitive and volatile race, distant from the world of men, but not evil. Under the Dark Union's sorcerous influence, the wartocks had grown bestial and murderous, their minds clouded with the lust for blood. It was the wartocks, in wave after wave, which drove back the forces of the Order, until it seemed all would be lost.

Seeing victory within his grasp, and no longer content to share the reins of power, Navaros betrayed the Dragon, Kaeros. In a foul perversion of the ancient bonding ritual, he devoured the creature's soul, absorbing its body into his own. Now, grown monstrous and nearly invincible, Navaros prepared to lead his armies against the last remnants of the Order of the Flame.

The Last Stand  
  
At the foot of Mount Tibor, the remains of the Order gathered for one final stand. In a last, desperate hope, the surviving mages had invested their power in a single weapon -- the Runeblade. Surrounded and outnumbered, the Order's only chance lay in this sword. The weapon was borne by the warrior Heron, and the dragon, Arokh.

As the armies clashed, Navaros entered a mystic trance, drawing power for a massive spell of destruction. The sound of the battle around him had become an unending roar of chaos, but he was undisturbed. With the stolen strength of his dragon's soul, Navaros had grown far mightier than any mage before him. Unimaginable forces filled him, dancing about his monstrous body like living smoke. As the words of destruction rose to his lips, a lone dragon came shrieking from the clouds, weaving amidst the streams of lightning and fire that flooded the sky. On Arokh's back, Heron gripped the Runeblade in both hands, and with one final cry, drove it deep into Navaros' blackened heart. All sound went silent somehow, in the moment of the act.

The tremendous forces Navaros had summoned were unleashed without direction, rippling across the field in jagged, searing bolts, which gouged and tore at the earth. The clash of swords was heard no longer, and blackness hung over the field. Only the low moans of the dying echoed in the gloom. When at last the smoke cleared, the two great armies lay decimated. Where Navaros had stood, a wound-like rip had been torn in the very fabric of space, its edges glowing and flickering with a dark and fibrous energy. In the smouldering crater below, Heron lay dead, the Runeblade broken in two at his side. In that blackened pit, only the dragon Arokh still clung to life.

The Order of the Flame was no more, but their enemies had been scattered. With the fall of Navaros, the Dark Union's hold on its bestial armies collapsed. But without the Order, survival became the world-imperative, and thoughts of nobility were forgotten. Chaos spread across the land. Weary of the human world, the remaining Dragons withdrew into timeless slumber, never again to return. The world split once more into many tribes and kingdoms, and the great achievements of the previous age were soon forgotten.

Magic and glory had faded from the world, and of the Order of the Flame, only the legends remained.

Stunned, Rynn placed the book back and looked around "Is this it? Is this what Atimar wanted me to see? A stupid book telling me what I already know?" She shouted in the darkness. "Just one of his silly stories and superstitions, he could be so infuriating at times. Oh well, I might as well make my way back, I have better things to do than read old books" she continued as she began to go back up the stairs. However the stairs began to crumble and disintegrated leaving her no choice but to go down. She could see a lit tunnel to one side and leaping from the platform, made her way down to it using the rocks around the edge of the pit.

The air seemed clammy and musty inside the pit, undisturbed for centuries. Wanting to be out of the place, Rynn continued into the tunnel but stopped when a sudden noise startled her. There, in front was a set of five swinging blades blocking the path, which swung by some magical force. They had obviously been activated by her presence and the sight filled her with dismay. To the left was a deep chasm leading down to infinite darkness preventing her from avoiding the lethal blades, the only way was through them. But, however, this simple trap was no challenge for the experienced warrior; she simply waited for each blade to swing by and ran out of the way.  
"Well that was hard!" she said sarcastically to herself, still angry at feeling that the whole thing was delaying her pursuit of Delon. She brushed aside a group of cobwebs and continued onwards to see where the tunnel came out.  
The natural rock of the tunnel gave way to beautifully made marble walls the likes that she had never seen before; only royalty and the very rich had things like that. Awe-struck, she continued till she came to a large underground circular room decorated with statues twice her height and marble figurines. Above, the ceiling consisted of magnificent coloured crystal illuminated by the magical properties contained in the crystal itself. In the middle of the room, lay a sarcophagus surrounded by a deep moat that she could not cross.

All of a sudden it dawned on her. What she was standing in was Heron's tomb!  
"So, it seems that Heron did exist after all, Atimar was right! I wonder if the same goes for Arokh and the rest of the Order?" she mused to herself. Leaning forward, something caught her eye; a crystal of some sort on the end of the sarcophagus - Rynn knew that Heron was buried with Arokh's soul crystal when he went into eternal sleep. It had to be true! If she could get that crystal, maybe it would lead her to the dragon himself then she would have a real chance of finding Delon.

Shivering with excitement, Rynn looked around the room for a way to cross the moat but all she could find was three floor switches that did nothing. Thinking that they had to be pressed in a certain order, she ran over them in every combination possible but still nothing happened. Disappointed, she sat down pondering about her situation. It would seem she was trapped in this place.  
"Bah! As if the Elder Breed of dragons existed, I was a fool to have believed it. The only so called dragons round here are those damn blackwings, nothing but reptiles with feathers" she said to herself angrily.

After sitting there for a few moments, her eyes turned to the three statues; she noticed that they were just behind the floor switches. _Maybe the statues had to be pushed onto the switches?_ She wondered. "Yes, that's it" she exclaimed as she ran up to the first statue, broken in half due to ageing. It pushed onto the switch easily but the other two were simply too heavy to move. Sighing with disappointment, she tried standing on the switch and to her relief the crystal began to glow brighter and with confidence she stood on the third which activated a bridge across to the sarcophagus.

Rynn leapt over the bridge with excitement and with trembling hands took the crystal from its place. A large booming sound erupted from below and some stairs replaced the deep moat rising upwards from the dark recess. Thinking that the stairs might retract again, she hurried down them until she came to another natural rock lined tunnel leading to an ancient lift. Heart beating, she pulled the lever beside the platform activating the lift and after a quick ascent up a deep shaft, found herself just out of town behind Atimar's house.  
"Now to find Arokh's Lair, its supposed to be a few miles out of town in the northern hills" she said to herself as she pocketed the soul crystal thinking for a moment of its possibilities if the legend turned out to be true.

Distant thunder reverberated through the hills as Rynn emerged from the cave; a storm sounded like it was on its way, which could bring snow possibly blocking or slowing her progress. It had been mild recently but the weather could soon change in the mountain lowlands in which her village resided. She realised that she must hurry and find Arokh. She stopped a moment to wonder what he would be like, from the legends he was supposedly the most powerful dragon known but Rynn was more interested in whether he would help or not. The thought crossed her mind that he might even kill her because legend had it, he was an arrogant beast with fearsome nature. It was a risk she was willing to take.

The path ahead led over the river, which had split into many forks as it flowed around the hills, and mounds that made up the lowlands of the mountains almost surrounding her village. Unfortunately, since the new bridges were built, the old wooden ones leading to the barren foothills fell into disrepair and most of the planks had rotted away. She glanced over the river. A couple of Orcs had seen her and came to the edge at the other side of the bridge but they did not cross to attack. She could see why; the bridge in front was almost impossible to cross due to missing planks. Jumping across would mean putting her weapons away but would leave her open to attack once she reached the other side. "_If only I had a bow_," she thought to herself.

Rynn walked up to the edge of the bridge eyeing the Orcs to see what their next move would be. Maybe they would be stupid enough to try and jump and fall down the hole but they knew the danger ahead. They did have at least _some_ intelligence.  
One of them started jumping up and down excitedly whilst the other one walked off back up the path he came from.

Now was the time for Rynn to attack. She took a few steps backwards and ran across the bridge jumping over the hole and catching the end plank with her outstretched hands. She quickly pulled herself up and drew the Mithril sword just as the Orc took a swing at her but she blocked it with the sword breaking the creature's weapon in two. The Orc stepped backwards but Rynn ran him through and turned to face his companion who had come to see what all the commotion was about.  
"Human die, all human die" he grunted in broken Drakanese; a language officially spoken by all humans since the Order's rule. Those words were probably the only words he knew and the only words he would ever know as Rynn chopped off his head before he could even pull out the wooden club from his waist belt. Glancing around briefly, Rynn sheathed her sword and continued on the path leading further away from her village and into unknown territory.

A plume of smoke rose up from behind a grass mound up ahead and the smell of cooking meat drifted in the air carried by the slight breeze.  
"_A camp. I'd better be careful_," Rynn thought to herself as she quietly crept up to the mound of grass looking out for stray Orcs or Wartocks. As the campfire came into view, she could see several Wartocks sleeping around the fire, one was on guard, his back turned. Near the fire were a couple of decent looking weapons and some armour; something she would definitely need soon, the rusty old chain mail she was wearing was falling to bits. Knowing that she was outnumbered and practically defenceless, she drank the invisibility potion she found earlier and crept up to the sleeping Wartocks, completely unnoticed.

The Wartock stood up and yawned. He was sure something moved over by the pile of wood and the axe he had just been using had disappeared. His eyes flicked over to the sword next to the skeleton and right before his eyes, the sword _disappeared_. Rubbing his eyes and holding his bottle of ale up he exclaimed, "Surely I haven't drunk that much!" and struggled over to investigate. The skeleton lifted up by itself and the armour lifted off and some worn armour clattered onto the ground. "What is going on here?" he shouted "Wake up, something strange is happening, things are moving about by themselves!  
"Don't be stupid" another answered. "Get some sleep, its someone else's turn to take watch."  
Rynn by this time had gone.

Examining her new weapons, Rynn was pleased to find them in good condition; she gained an axe like the one she found on the rocks near her home and a longsword. Not armour piercing but a sharp weapon nevertheless. Useful against Orcs and the deadly Scavengers usually found within the lowlands.  
Rynn came to another fork in the path and taking the right hand path came to an old cemetery, which had not been used for what looked like centuries. During his teachings of the Order, Atimar had mentioned a cemetery just out of the village that contained the graves of warriors who died during the Dark Wars but never said exactly where it was. Rynn, like most of his stories, had treat it with scepticism but now, she was beginning to believe all what he had taught her.  
She carefully pushed open the gate, which was covered in moss and fungus but yet strangely opened easily as if somebody had been there recently. Knowing that she might need a hasty retreat, she propped it open with a stone and crept up to the first line of gravestones.

Nothing was heard apart from the rush of the wind as she walked amongst the final resting places of the Order's warriors. She stopped to examine one.  
"Here lies Argorn, bonded of Werokh who gave his life protecting Drakan from the evil of the Dark Union. May he rest in peace and never be forgotten."  
"Wow" Rynn whispered "The Order really must have existed."  
She looked across the graveyard and saw an open tomb, which seemed too good to resist. There had to be something good in there, unless of course the Orcs has been there first.  
Walking up to the entrance, the young warrior noticed it had been recently forced open confirming her thoughts of it being looted; there was nothing to be found inside except for a few statues similar to the ones in Heron's tomb. This one must have been of somebody very high ranking within the Order, perhaps a General she thought.

Rynn was just about to leave when she noticed one of the walls at the end of the long tomb had collapsed revealing a courtyard with a pedestal in the middle. She went to investigate when she saw something on top of the pedestal but she couldn't quite make out what it was. Suddenly, a scavenger emerged from behind a rock hissing in defiance at its newfound prey. Startled, Rynn drew her new long sword and took a swing at the hideous creature cutting off one of its feet. She ran past as fast as she could taking a sideways stab as she did so and flipping over backwards landing neatly behind to land the final blow. She ran forward and grabbed the object from the pedestal and ran back to the safety of the tomb.

Examining the object, Rynn could see it was a magical crystal of some sort, orange in colour and images of flames carved into the crystal.  
"_I wonder how this works_" She thought. She held it into the air and nothing happened. "Fire!" she said loudly and suddenly a ring of fire emerged from her feet gradually spreading out burning everything in its path.  
"This will definitely come in handy" She said to herself as she left the graveyard.

As she walked back up the path leading deeper into the wilderness, an Orc noticed her and called for others. Without wasting any time she crossed the bridge and knocked them down as quickly as possible. She didn't want them to gather to create problems for her. As she moved down the path another one was waiting for her taking advantage of being at night hoping to go unnoticed. She knocked him down too - they were no match for the skilled warrior. There was more to come though, Rynn spotted four orcs blocking her path but they didn't notice her. She wondered if she had something better to fight; the Orcs were becoming boring having to deal with them on an almost weekly basis; attacks on humans were very frequent.

She was about to leave but something stopped her, it was the whispers that she heard and down to her right she found some orcs standing in a group below. She noticed two large rocks to one side near the top of the small cliff and something suddenly struck her mind. She could roll those rocks onto the unaware Orcs getting the upper hand. Laughing to herself, she rolled them and dropped them just above the orcs crushing them and blowing up a nearby barrel of explosives reducing some resistance. She carefully walked over to the other side and further down she found some arrows behind the box but it was useless without a bow. Still she kept them hoping to find a bow soon.

Looking around, she noticed an open gate hoping to find some weapon in the small cave inside and she quickly ducked in and found a long sword and some health potions, which she quickly drank and was back to full strength. Noticing another cave entrance she moved in and after ripping apart a scavenger took another fire crystal. "Great another one of these, very handy!" then she turned back to her path and kept moving up the hill. Ahead, she was unaware of the trap that orcs laid for her; as she approached them she noticed an Orc ready to slide a big rock down towards her but the thing she didn't notice was another Orc standing behind the hill ready to roll another huge rock at her. Rynn heard something coming towards her from behind and she suddenly stepped back. "That was close," Rynn said as the huge rock came thundering past. She then ran up and cleared the broken bridge, as she knew the orcs won't be daring enough to jump over, also every second was important for her and she didn't want to waste time fighting them. The only thing she expected were enemies that could attack her anytime so she was alert and she cautiously continued deeper into the wilderness hoping to find her goal soon.

It was almost morning when Rynn finally reached the location of Arokh's Lair. It was near a large open plateau set directly at the base of a huge snow capped mountain, which towered high above her. Many caves littered these rocky lands mainly populated with scavengers who preyed on unwary travellers. Humans, Orcs and even Wartocks who were unlucky enough to stumble by their lairs became food, stripped to the bone in minutes; hardly a place for the home of the saviour of the world. As Rynn looked across the plateau, she noticed a different cave between two pine trees; one who's entrance was carved into the shape of a Dragon's head.  
"Arokh's lair!" She exclaimed, her heart skipping a beat as she suddenly realised that she would probably be the first member of the Order of the Flame reborn. That is if Arokh is willing to bond and help find Delon. She took a deep breath and walked up to the entrance.

The large Dragon head loomed above her, it was beautifully carved in intricate detail showing the sharp teeth and the glaring eye. She took a moment to observe it, wondering who or what took the time to carve such an intricate structure in the solid rock. Taking another deep breath, she ventured inside. The short, natural tunnel opened out to a small passing point cave and then narrowed again when it gave way to a man made stone tunnel leading round in an L shape. As Rynn neared the L shaped junction, a large clanging noise sounded and a couple of swinging blades came out of the walls moving slowly up and down the passage ahead.  
"Traps!" she hissed "I had a feeling this wouldn't be easy" she remarked as she observed the timings of the blades. If she ran down the tunnel jumping at the right moment, she would make it past the trap. It was all down to timing. She noticed a couple of skeletons on the floor; obviously belonging to would be adventurers that met a messy ending in the deadly traps.

Rynn stood there in the semi-darkness for a good few minutes waiting till the time was right to make her move. "Now!" a voice seemed to say to her in her head and she ran as quickly as she could jumping just as a swinging blade came towards her. She landed in a dusty tunnel at the other side leading to another set of blades, this time three of them. Rynn put her hand over her mouth and coughed as the dust blew up in plumes from her feet where they had disturbed it. She lit a nearby torch and examined the next trap ahead of her kicking a single dragon scale out of her way so she would not slip. She never thought that she had just cast away a part of the legendary Dragon's body…

Again, this one was down to timing and after a few moments she made her move ducking, running and ducking then doing a neat side roll to avoid the third blade. Heart pounding she reached up and lit a couple more torches fastened to wooden beams supporting the ceiling. The flickering flames revealed a partially collapsed floor. Carefully, Rynn stood on the fragile floor but it crumbled and the bricks fell away. It was a long time before she heard the bricks hit something; the pit below must be hundreds of feet deep. Seemingly impossible to cross, Rynn leant against the wall observing the remaining stone bricks. She could just make it if no more stones fell. With a sudden boost of adrenaline, fuelled by her determination to find Delon and not letting anything stand in her way, she jumped across the pit neatly landing on a brick at the other side. The mortar around the stone began to crumble.

Panicking, Rynn jumped again and landed in the dirt face down, she had made it across but now she could not get back again. If Arokh were to attack her, there would be no way out. She grabbed a torch from the wall and lit it, carrying it with her illuminating the walls with flickering orange-yellow light. She was the first human to set foot in that cave for six hundred years and the thought made her feel somewhat privileged and better than the would be adventurers who's remains were back in the traps.

Shortly, Rynn came to a large open topped cavern lit only by the moonlight coming in through the hole in the top. Down below, on a platform was a large statue of a Dragon in a magnificent pose and below it, a strange looking altar made from crystal the same colour as the soul crystal she found. Around the edge of the cavern was winding path leading down. Shaking with anticipation of what may lie ahead, Rynn began her decent to the bottom.

Small stones made a crunching noise under her feet and dust sifted down from overhanging rocks untouched for centuries as she stumbled down the steep path. Reaching the bottom, She looked up and saw the statue towering above her like it was keeping watch over something, whoever had created it was a good sculptor she thought. There was utter silence bar the sound of the wind through the hole in the cavern top. The young woman carefully walked up to the crystal structure, her footsteps echoing in the circular cavern and noticed that it had a small recess in the centre.

"I wonder where Arokh is, maybe he's sleeping somewhere" she said to herself as she reached for the soul crystal.  
"I suppose I put this here," she said aloud as she placed the crystal into the recess. Almost instantly, the crystal was pulled out of her hands and rose up till it was between three crystal prongs at the top of the structure and it began to glow very brightly. There was a crashing and thundering noise as fragments of rock showered her. She looked up. The statue had come alive!

Arokh glared down onto the pathetic looking human with two cruel red eyes. His red scales shone in the semi darkness where the yellow light from his soul crystal struck them making it difficult to make out his true colour.  
"Who dares awaken me?" he growled. "Answer me!"  
Rynn cleared her throat and uneasily replied "It was me, you may call me Rynn."  
Fury grew up inside the dragon's body and with a roar he jumped down onto the cave floor knocking Rynn to the ground. He put one foot onto her chest pinning her to the floor.  
"Inferior Upstart!" he roared "Where did you get that cursed stone?"  
Rynn began to panic. She was done for. Trembling she answered "No need to be angry, I'm not your enemy you know. You see, Atimar sent me. He said something about the Order of the Flame."  
Arokh craned his neck back slightly and rolled his eyes. "Atimar hmm, can't say I've heard of him, I never knew anyone by that name in the Order" he said thoughtfully, recalling the names of humans and dragons that he had met during his service in the Order.

"It has been six centuries since Navaros's defeat, Arokh. Atimar is the scribe of our village and teaches us the legends of the Order" Rynn informed.  
"Six centuries, bah!" he snarled moving his head closer to her again. "It was supposed to be forever. Why have you awakened me?"  
Rynn tried to move but she was securely clamped to the floor with Arokh's foot, she stopped struggling and replied fearfully hoping her answer would justify awakening him. It didn't.  
"There was a Wartock raid on my village and my brother was kidnapped, I need help to find him," she said quietly but loud enough for the dragon to hear.

Arokh loosened his grip on her and Rynn began to slide backwards on her elbows. Arokh did not bother to stop her.  
"WHAT!" he yelled "You awaken me, Arokh, bonded of Heron, defeater of the Dark Union and saviour of all Drakan for THAT!" He put his head nearer to the terrified Rynn demanding an answer. She could feel his hot breath on her face.  
This time it was Rynn's turn to be the angry one. She jumped up to her feet and replied "How dare you! That's the life of my brother you are talking about!" She shouted making to hit Arokh in the side of his face. She soon stopped when she realised what she was about to do.

Taken aback by this, Arokh replied "hmm" and there was a slight pause. "You show courage but you are still only a pathetic peasant girl" he continued, his dagger tooth mouth curving into a sneer. "What could I possibly do for you?" he said scornfully, his eyes boiling with rage.  
"You could bond" Rynn replied.  
"HAH! What makes you think you are worthy? What makes you think you can be a knight of the Order?" he snorted in disgust.  
Rynn did not reply.  
Arokh snorted again and looked away then he sighed and gave a slight bittersweet smile. He had to bond with this human to prevent him being used for evil intent. Anyone could bond with him; all they had to do was say the final phrase. The girl didn't know it though.  
"Very well Rynn, I will listen" he finally said turning to face her again.  
"But does this mean you will help me Arokh?" she asked in a shaky voice, feeling nervous and awkward in the dragon's presence.  
"I do not have much choice" he snapped. But if you wish to bond you must show your respect for me and fully understand the rules of the Order."  
Rynn shrugged and said "So, yeah, I suppose so."  
"Fine." Arokh replied. "Kneel before me and swear that you will respect and honour me and in return Ill be your companion and ally for the rest of your life. We will always be together from this day on. Remember that. Treat me with disrespect and you will bear the consequences."  
Rynn didn't bother to ask what the 'consequences' were and dropped to one knee at Arokh's feet. She looked up into his eyes and said, "I swear" and just for good measure went down on her hands and knees and kissed his left foot. She stood up and looked him in the eye.  
"I didn't tell you to get up!" he shouted.  
Rynn straightway knelt back down and looked up at him, her heart pounding.

Arokh smiled to himself and continued "Good, now there are certain things I must tell you about the bond. First of all, any pain and injuries I suffer, you too will share. And if I am killed, your fate will be worse than death. You will be pleased to know that you will benefit from a longer life. You will age at the same rate as me and die when I die of natural causes."  
Rynn knew the fate would mean her becoming a soul shadow and shortly replied "I understand."  
"You seem too sure." He said in a quieter voice and seeing that Rynn did not reply he continued. "Very well Rynn, if you wish to bond with me simply say by fire and by blood I join with thee in the Order of the Flame" his stern voice echoing in the circular cave.  
Rynn thought for a moment. Surely Arokh's attitude towards her would change once they had bonded and she could prove him wrong that she was not a 'pathetic peasant girl'.  
Not bothering to ask any more questions and without fully thinking, she slowly stood up and walked over to the opposite side of the soul crystal so it was between her and Arokh and repeated the words Arokh had just said.

As the last word left her lips, Rynn could feel herself being lifted into the air by an unseen force. She looked across at Arokh who was opposite her hovering in the air and the glow from the soul crystal spread out around the cavern like lightning and touched them both. Pain began to fill her body but she did not cry out. Then, just as it started it was over and she slowly drifted down to the floor.

Something was different though; an indescribable feeling, somehow she felt the dragon's power within her and she smiled to herself.  
"Congratulations, Rynn. You are now a member of the Order of the Flame" Arokh welcomed.  
"Lets get going!" Rynn said as she walked up to Arokh. He dipped to let her onto his back, which she climbed on with ease as if she had been doing it all her life.  
"By the way, you don't have to hold on, magic holds you to my back during flight" Arokh said.  
"_This is easier than I thought_," Rynn thought to herself as she settled between his shoulders, his soft but yet strong scales surprisingly comfortable, padded by the powerful muscles beneath them.  
"What about your soul crystal?" Rynn asked tapping the dragon on the neck thinking he had forgotten it. He grunted in reply "It will be safer where it is."

Together, the pair flew up to the hole in the roof of the cave and over the wilderness back towards Rynn's village eventually arriving at the tunnel leading under the mountains Rynn visited earlier. The journey only took a few minutes making Rynn's attempt at covering the same distance seemingly pathetic.  
Arokh landed and together they walked into the tunnel, the river flowing noisily beside them. She hadn't quite grasped the situation that she was now bonded to something of legend, something that was once the saviour of mankind, a hero.

**Chapter Three: Wartock Canyons****  
**  
It was difficult for Rynn and Arokh to talk due to the noise of the river flowing by the side of them as they walked through the long tunnel cutting under the mountains. Despite the nearby Wartocks, the tunnel was often used as the main route taken by traders coming from the northlands as the only other real way to reach the village was by sea.

Eventually, they spotted light at the end and Arokh gained speed wanting to be out of that place a much as Rynn did. She could feel the dragon's movements through his immense body.  
_"Riding Arokh on the ground isn't that different from a horse,"_ she thought to herself. Of course in the air it was a different matter, it was the most wonderful feeling she had experienced.

"A Wartock mentioned the mines, we should start looking there for my brother" Rynn suggested as they left the tunnel into the long canyon simply known as Wartock Canyons. Arokh grunted but did not give any real reply. Thunder echoed down the canyons and rain started to fall soaking Rynn and Arokh. The air had come much cooler seem as they were higher up in the mountains and she shivered with the cold.  
She wasn't exactly dressed for the weather conditions with her thin leather tunic and scale mail. At least Arokh's back gave off some warmth she thought.

"A Grull!" Arokh exclaimed as he spotted one of the creatures, which Rynn referred to as Orcs. "Oh, is that what you call them" she said.  
"Vile disgusting creatures" Arokh said as he shot several balls of flame in the Grull's direction roasting it alive. Its companion cowered nearby at the sight of the dragon placing its small hands over its head.  
"I see you have a dislike for them as well" Rynn laughed trying to break the ice. She could feel that the dragon was still angry for he was nasty and sarcastic and she wanted to do something to lighten his attitude towards her.  
"Rynn, you would not believe the hatred I have for those things. Them, along with their Wartock cousins were the main troops of the Dark Union" Arokh growled.  
"Seems like we have something in common then" Rynn answered, glad to share at least one common interest with the dragon.  
Arokh smiled slightly and walked up to the still cowering Grull covering its face with its club.

"Die you hideous beast" he snarled as he unleashed a steady stream of flame burning it to the bone in seconds. A sudden wave of satisfaction came over him, it was so good to be back!  
"Arokh look out!" Rynn shouted as a third Grull bravely came up to attack from the left. Too near to use his breath weapon, Arokh bent down and bit off the Grull's head and crushed it in his mouth like a grape. He quickly spat it out in disgust.  
The horrified Rynn looked down at the mess of blood and saliva and thought to herself "_He's bad. I'd better stay on his good side."_

Arokh turned his head to fix Rynn with a glaring eye.  
"Do you want to get off and pick up those potions the Grull dropped?" he asked.  
"Yeah" Rynn said as she jumped off looking up the path as she did. "It looks like there's a burnt out house up there, we might find something."

Arokh didn't reply and quickly glanced up to the house and then back to the pathway. He wasn't in the mood for waiting whilst the nuisance of a woman explored some old ruins. He wasn't even in the mood for being there at all; his life, his purpose now wasted on finding some insignificant village boy when it could have been spent on defeating evil threats to the world such as another man like Navaros. Hell, he could have been part of the Order reborn if its return to the world would be needed again. Now it looked like he was stuck with her, "_perhaps not for long if she got herself killed_ " he thought. He grinned to himself at this thought but his jaws soon dropped when he remembered his soul crystal; if Rynn was killed, he would return to his lair in stone but the soul crystal would dissolve and a new one would appear where his mortal form fell. Anyone could pick it up and use him to his or her advantage much like Rynn but it could be far worse. He let out a sigh, as a slight feeling of depression came over him wondering what to do. He stared after Rynn who was now at the ruins and decided to stick with her to see where she led him. He had to protect her at all costs if he wanted to survive himself.

Rynn walked around the burnt out farmhouse nodding in Arokh's direction to acknowledge him as he joined her. The ruin was still smouldering; it looked like the Orcs had been there before her village, leaving a trail of destruction behind them. There was nothing to be found in the ash that was any use to her. She looked across the river flowing down the canyon and saw another three houses. One looked to be intact and smoke could be seen coming from the chimney. A place to visit later, for now she continued up the steep path with Arokh following closely behind ready to protect his soul mate from any harm.

The path led up to a cave blocked by a huge boulder; either something nasty was lurking in there or the wartocks were hiding something. It seemed too good to ignore and she tried to push the boulder out of the way but it was too heavy. Arokh landed and observed Rynn from behind covering her back should anything come up unexpectedly.  
Rynn strained again and gave up. "Help me with this thing, instead of just standing there!" She shouted to the dragon.  
Arokh frowned and strode up to the boulder rearing up on his hind legs. "Get out my way then" he snorted when Rynn didn't move.  
"Oh" she replied and quickly got out of the way.

Arokh bent down and picked up the boulder with his front feet and wings flapping to steady himself, walked on his rear legs carrying the boulder and hurled it down the hill like it was as light as a feather.  
"Well, that's impressive" Rynn exclaimed. Arokh looked down his chest, eyes following his magnificent body to his tail and grinned when he saw that Rynn was looking straight at him. "You think so?" he questioned with a slight smile thinking that the girl would be impressed by the full view of his body. He purposely posed so that his muscles bulged and stood out to look more impressive.  
"Not quite Arokh. I meant the boulder you just threw" she sighed as she crouched and went into the small cave previously blocked up.  
With a thud, Arokh put his front feet back on the ground going back to his normal walking position and sat waiting for Rynn to return.

Rynn cautiously walked into the cave. It seemed quiet in there, no spiders, scavengers or anything. Just lots of grimstone, which lit the cave with an eerie green glow.  
"Ugh! Grimstone" Rynn said to herself with disgust trying to keep herself as far away from it as possible.  
She could remember someone once telling her that grimstone is a magical substance that grows in crystal form in mountainous regions throughout the world of Drakan. It can weaken the wills of all but the most powerful mages merely by continued close exposure. It is also used for generating forcefields and barriers; useful for sealing off protected areas. Forces of evil had usually used Grimstone as the Order found the substance to be too dangerous and banned its mining and use.

Looking around the cave and avoiding contact with the grimstone, Rynn noticed more human remains on the ground. She picked up the potion of life and the Mithril axe next to the skeleton. It was well worn but in better condition than her Mithril sword she found earlier. She didn't have any more room so she threw the sword away leaving her with two axes, two long swords, a heavy but devastating battle hammer and some arrows. She desperately needed a decent armour-piercing weapon...

Something suddenly struck her legs causing her to cry out in pain. A scavenger had crept up to her unnoticed and attacked with its blood soaked claws. Rynn spun round and did a downward chop with the axe killing the creature in one blow.  
"Wow, this does major damage, pity its almost useless" she said. "Now to get out of here."

She exited the cave to face Arokh. "I feel that you ran into trouble," he said. Rynn gave a puzzled expression and then noticed the wound on Arokh's hind legs. "Do my injuries affect you too?" she asked. Arokh nodded in reply.  
"Oh, so what happens if I get killed, you become a soul shadow too?" she asked as she mounted the great red dragon.  
"No Rynn. It's different with me. I become encased in stone again in my lair and a new soul crystal appears where my body fell. I can then be reawakened just like before. Remember, I was bonded to Heron and he died during the battle against Navaros" he explained carefully.  
"That's why if you are not up to scratch, I can be used to anyone's advantage even for evil intent" he continued as he took off into the sky.  
Rynn laughed "I won't let that happen, I promise."  
"I don't have much choice in the matter" the dragon muttered under his breath but Rynn did not hear him.

"Down there, Rynn. Grull!" Arokh pointed out as they flew over the river hovering above a burnt out house. He landed and swiftly dealt with the closest one and Rynn hopped off to explore the ruins of the house. Two heath potions were found in the fireplace, which had seemingly survived the blaze. "_Unless somebody had put them there afterwards_" she thought to herself as she picked them up.  
A large thundering boom shook the ash and dust as Arokh flamed another Grull sneaking up behind. "Just watching your back" he said nodding his head at the smouldering corpse. Rynn's eyes flicked over to the dead Grull and walked up to Arokh and tried to mount him. "You go on. Ill be right here," he said refusing to let her onto his back. He wanted to see what her combat skills were like for a while. He would bail her out of trouble if necessary.

Two Grull were up ahead and Rynn killed them with deadly accuracy not even taking any damage herself even though she had slipped in the mud as the rain was quickly turning the path into a slippery mess. Arokh landed behind on a patch of grass away from the muddy path. "Not bad Rynn, not bad. You seem a proficient fighter," he said with a smile.  
"You're not bad yourself" she replied as she mounted him. It would seem that the dragon might be beginning to like her, she just had that feeling. Arokh took off and they flew over to the next house which was intact, again it was similar in design to the ones in her village as most homes were designed and built by the same team some 50 years ago.  
"That house looks inhabited! Arokh remarked as he noticed the smoke coming out of the chimney.  
"I think you are right, Ill go and investigate. There may be someone inside who might know something about the whereabouts of my brother." Rynn agreed, jumping off the dragon's back walking up to knock on the front door.

"Come in" a man's voice shouted from inside. Rynn opened the door, closing it softly behind her.  
A middle aged man sat alone at a table, a roaring fire behind him. Several swords and a shield were arranged in a decoration fastened to the wall above the fireplace. The house had a ladder leading up to a wooden platform fastened to the rafters where several barrels and utensils could be seen.  
"_Warmth!_" Rynn thought to herself.  
"What can I do for you?" the man questioned putting aside the book he was reading.  
"I'm looking for my brother, there was a raid on my village and almost all have been killed or captured. I think that the Wartocks took him to the mines" she replied, explaining the situation.

The man's face changed into a frown as he thought of the attack on his neighbours during the early hours of the morning. "Some wartocks came by earlier. They tried to destroy my house but I scared them off" he said, shifting about on his chair to remove an itch.  
"How?" Rynn asked.  
"This" the man said as he outstretched his hands suddenly producing a fireball in the palm of his hands. He suddenly aborted the spell. Rynn looked on amazed.  
"Don't look so surprised girl. I'm no wizard but I know one or two tricks to keep the wartocks at bay."  
Not really interested in what the man was showing her she got straight to the point. "So, do you know anything about my brother or not?" she asked impatiently.  
"No, but you can find the mine further up the valley. It's heavily guarded though. The dragon you ride will be a great help but you will need better weapons." The man suggested.  
"How do you know about Arokh?" Rynn asked, surprised.  
"I sensed him" came the reply.

There was a pause. The man eventually said "If you are looking for weapons, I know where a good one can be found but I need a favour first."  
"Where?" Asked Rynn, suddenly interested.  
"In a cave high up on the valley wall, on the left just after where the canyon bends." The man answered, stroking his chin remembering the location of the sword he was told about by some traveller many years ago.  
Rynn shrugged and said, "what do you want me to do?"  
"I need the old mine behind the house clearing out of spiders. I need a place to hide from the wartocks and this house won't be a suitable place soon. You must kill all of the spiders."

Spiders were one of Rynn's worst fears and she disliked the idea and promptly gave her answer. "If you think I'm wasting my time just to get a rusty old sword you are mistaken!"  
"This is no rusty sword girl. It's a magical flame sword. Trust me, it will be worth the effort." The man offered.  
"Okay. Ill do it" she said uneasily after a short pause.  
"Here, take this key, you will need it to get into the mine." The man offered an old, well-used key to Rynn. She took it and left the house.

"Find anything out?" Arokh asked.  
"Sort of. We need to go spider hunting first" Rynn replied.  
Arokh looked puzzled for a moment and let her climb onto his back.  
"Land over there Arokh, beside that gate" Rynn said pointing out the entrance to the mine the man had mentioned. Without warning, a flaming fireball shot past them crashing into the mountain wall. Arokh rolled out of the way of the blast and turned to face the threat. At first he thought it was another dragon but it turned out to be a catapult manned by Grull hurling rocks covered in flaming tar in their direction.

"That was close" Arokh exclaimed as he returned fire dodging another flaming missile with practised ease. The catapult erupted in flame and ceased firing.  
"We'd better be careful. It would seem they have good defences up there, whatever they are guarding" he said quietly. He looked around for more airborne threats and landed beside the gate Rynn pointed out.  
Rynn jumped off Arokh and unlocked the gate peering into the mine for any enemies.  
"Good luck Rynn" Arokh wished his companion.  
Rynn looked up into his sparkling red eyes and saw that the Dragon genuinely was concerned for her. "I will be careful. See you soon" she said as she disappeared into the darkness.

Arokh sat down and thought about the events of the last couple of hours. He realised that what is done is done and there is no point in being bitter about it. The human seemed okay, he felt that a good friendship would develop between them; she certainly seemed to share his sense of humour. True, his purpose would be wasted unless the Dark Union were to raise its ugly head once more during his lifetime but it did not seem to really matter anymore. He thought that he had better change his attitude towards her as well and cut out the nastiness and sarcasm. It would be hard as that was just the way he is unless talking to somebody equal or more powerful than him; to them he would be surprisingly polite and noble.  
After helping out Rynn, he planned to explore the world and to find any more dragons of his kind so that the Elder Breed would be reborn. But that would be another day. He laid down in the damp grass with the rain running down his scaled body and let out a huge sigh.

Inside, Rynn found that the torches were already lit, how she did not know, it looked like this place hadn't had human visitors for years. Unless the torches were enchanted she thought...

Cobwebs hung from every wooden beam and pointed piece of rock along the walls. The mine had obviously been closed down due to exhaustion of its product; there was no grimstone in sight.

A spider egg sac hung from one of the beams and Rynn drew away in disgust as she passed it. She stopped and thought for a moment and picked up a discarded torch on the floor. She lit it from one of the nearby torches on the wall and set fire to the sac making a disgusting odour fill the area. She threw the torch onto the ground putting her hand over her mouth to mask the smell and continued deeper into the mine.

A slight pattering noise suddenly sounded in front of her. _Spiders!_ Swallowing hard and drawing her weapon she walked forwards and chopped the arachnids with the axe splattering them into a horrible mess. Sweat began to form on her forehead even though it was freezing in there and ran down her cheek. She wiped it away leaving a sooty smear across her face and swallowed again. She hated spiders and wanted to be out of there as quickly as possible.

Setting fire to another sac she came to a huge gap in the path and looking down, she could see that the mine was very deep. There was no lift shaft however; it looked like it was one continuous winding path leading deeper and deeper. There was no bridge over the gap and it was too far to jump.  
"Bah, I knew there was something funny about that man" she said to herself ready to turn back. Suddenly it dawned on her. The wooden beam in front was rotten at the base and could possibly reach the other side if cut down. Not thinking that it may bring down the roof, Rynn cut the beam with the axe sending it crashing to the ground bridging the gap.  
"Excellent" Rynn exclaimed and crossed the bridge facing more spiders. She now had confidence in the axe and she proudly strode ahead slaying spiders as she got deeper and deeper into the mine.

Eventually she reached the bottom. She noticed a couple of barrels by the path side and upon the top of them was a bow! She excitedly ran over to it and picked it up. Now she had something to use those arrows in and they would come in handy for reaching those spiders that insisted on staying on the roof attacking from above. She smashed open the barrels revealing health potions and some flaming arrows. She drank one potion to heal wounds and pocketed the other.

Thwack! Rynn hit another spider with her Uber axe but the thing broke against the floor. "It lasted longer than I thought" Rynn said and grabbed the bow aiming for another spider coming at her from above. Ahead she could see something moving; it did not look like a spider. Moving closer, she saw that it was a Wartock caught in the spider's webs. To the left of the Wartock was the biggest spider she had seen.  
"This must be the spider's nest!" she exclaimed. "Now how do I destroy it?" she asked herself. Something suddenly bit her and looking down saw that she was surrounded by baby spiders. A mild panic began in her throat and she began hacking at them with the other axe but it was hopeless. She got bit again and her vision began to go hazy with the poison. She quickly reached for the flame crystals and let loose a couple of blasts obliterating the spiders leaving nothing alive. The large queen spider seemed unaffected but it did not attack.

Rynn drank two more health potions and followed the path which now seemed to be going upwards slaying more spiders as she went. Eventually she came to a hole in the floor and carefully peering down saw that the queen spider was directly below her. She made her way around the hole to the opposite side where a plank of wood sat resting on a case. An explosives barrel was on the end of the plank. She collected the items from the nearby table and suddenly had an idea. What if the barrel was dropped on the spider?

Being sure that it would work, Rynn jumped on the other end of the plank tossing the barrel straight into the spider's nest. A roar could be heard and the roof gave way burying the spider under hundreds of rocks.  
Rynn rubbed her hands together, happy that she had overcome her fear, the task was much easier than she had thought but there was still the problem of getting out of there.

There was no way back due to the rock fall so Rynn pressed on. No more spiders attacked her as she wandered around the upper parts of the mine. It looked like to her that it used to be some sort of sleeping quarters; obviously of slaves that once worked in the mine. Several beds were set against the walls made of wood and oxen hair mattresses horribly musty and rotten with age. Looking round, she spotted a hole in the wall and she jumped up on nearby crates and went through. Daylight could be seen ahead. Following the path, Rynn came out of a cave further up the canyon straight into a group of wartocks who were sitting around a campfire.

"Arokh!" Rynn yelled at the top of her voice.  
Arokh got to his feet quickly and looked in the direction his bonded was shouting from. "Yes Rynn, I hear you. Hold on!" he shouted back and came to Rynn's aid with a powerful beat of his wings.  
By now the Wartocks had heard Rynn and came running over to attack. She readied her battle hammer and swung at the first one then began to run round him in circles taking sideways swipes whenever she could. The weapon did not pierce the armour, only dented it with it being a blunt weapon and her arm was starting to ache with the heavy weapon. It was obviously meant for strong men and Wartocks to use.  
"Arokh help me!" she shouted.

"Get out of the way" the dragon commanded as he hurled fireballs at the Wartock. Rynn could feel the searing heat and ran back to the safety of the cave. Arokh meanwhile finished them off and landed amongst the dead grinning triumphantly.  
"Ashes to Ashes" he remarked nodding his head at a nearby Wartock.  
Rynn smiled at the Dragon's humorous comment and patted him on the side of his neck. "Thanks Arokh, I would have been surely killed there."  
"No problem. What have you been up to my friend?" he asked in a soft, friendly voice.  
"_My friend_" Rynn thought. "_His attitude has soon changed from what it was half an hour ago._"  
"Ah, just slaying lots of Drakan's arachnid population. Now lets tell that man I have completed his task." She said answering his question but decided to query his attitude. "You seem to be friendly all of a sudden, what's got into you?"

Arokh's eyes showed some concern at her question. He knew he had been very rude and nasty recently but he thought it was justified, but however he had decided to amend his ways. He was not one for apologies and had hoped that his change of manner would go unnoticed.

"Nothing" he answered bluntly.

"Oh" Rynn said sarcastically. "I thought you had found something to have sex with whilst I was gone, you know release some of that frustration you had in you."

"What?" Arokh snarled angrily. "You suggesting I had a quick tug whilst you were in the mine? Because there is nothing around here but, oh never mind. How dare you!"

Rynn smiled to herself. "I'm sorry Arokh for offending you. It was just a little light hearted joke, no offence but you seem the type who fancies himself."

"Hmm, well it's not funny" Arokh said in a quieter voice. "You say anything like that again and Ill slap you silly. Now come on, we should get to that man."

Arokh turned around noticing the animal carcass the wartocks were cooking and devoured it in the most disgusting manner. Dragons certainly did not have any good manners when it came to eating. He belched loudly and proclaimed "I'm starving, that filled a little hole."  
Rynn smiled and suddenly realised that she was hungry herself having not eaten since the night before. "I'm hungry as well Arokh," she said.  
"You should have mentioned it. The next camp we come across, Ill let you have your share first" he replied as he began to head for the man's house.

Rynn did not bother to knock this time and walked right into the room. The man looked up from the table but did not say anything but looked surprised to see her.  
"There, I've done all you asked. The spiders are dead," she said as she gave him the key to the mine. "I didn't lock it" she continued.  
The man's face drew into a broad grin. "Excellent work, here take this. It's the rune key you will need to get access to the sword." He threw a stone engraved with yellow markings onto the table and Rynn picked it up. There was an uneasy feeling between them, Rynn wanted to make sure he was safe but she could not delay.  
"Well, I'd best be going. Farewell and good luck" she said to the man and promptly left.

Outside, Arokh was waiting as usual. "Did you get anything?" he asked.  
"Yeah, I got..." her voice trailed off as a blackwing came towards them spitting acidic poisonous blasts at them.  
"Blackwings, quick, get on my back!" Arokh yelled. Rynn mounted the Dragon choking on the poisonous fumes and trying not to breathe them in. Arokh swiftly took off to face his first aerial foe in centuries hurling fireballs at the dragon / bird hybrid creature singing its feathers and burning its scaled underbelly. Rynn was getting thrown all over the place. She reached for a health potion but dropped it into the river below.  
"Rynn! I feel myself weakening. Do something!" he snarled as he dodged another flaming missile fired from another catapult further up the valley.

"I'm trying!" Rynn snapped, desperately trying to pull the cork from the potion of life she held. She eventually managed it and drank the contents restoring their health and strength. With one final blow, Arokh sent the blackwing crashing to the ground and turned his attention to the catapult destroying it in seconds.  
Hovering for a moment he said "you will have to be quicker than that if we are to survive, I need to rely on you to heal us whilst I fight."  
"I know, it's kind of difficult with moving around" Rynn answered.  
"Oh, so Ill stay still and get pounded then" Arokh growled sarcastically, beginning to doubt the human's abilities.  
"Ill get used to it, don't worry."  
"I hope so" Arokh grunted as he scanned the skies looking for more airborne enemies.

"What exactly are those blackwings, Arokh? We have always called them crow or blade dragons" Rynn questioned, interested to find out more about the aerial terrors.  
"There are many different breeds of dragon, Rynn." Arokh replied. "For example there are bat dragons, ice dragons and of course Elder Breed dragons like me. Although sadly I believe I'm the only one left" he continued with some slight sadness in his voice.  
"Only the Elder Breed can bond, other breeds don't have the magical properties or genetics necessary" he explained.  
"That clears things up Arokh. Thanks. Now shall we look for that sword, the man mentioned its high up just around that corner" Rynn suggested.

"Good idea" the dragon replied with enthusiasm.

It wasn't long before they found the cave the man was talking about; it was not hard to find. Rynn jumped off Arokh's back as he landed on the small rocky platform in front of the cave. The soft snow crunched under Rynn's feet; the rain had turned to snow higher up the mountainside where the air was much cooler.  
Three oval shaped stones carved with yellow text in an ancient language blocked the entrance to the cave and the middle stone had a small recess cut into it just at shoulder height.

"I suppose the rune fits in here," she said to Arokh who had followed with interest. "Try it, there's only one way to find out" he suggested.  
Rynn placed the rune into the hole and stepped back as a thundering noise sounded and the middle stone retracted into the ground in a show of yellow light revealing a dark man made tunnel. She turned to Arokh who raised a single eyeridge. "I see it worked."  
"Ill go in then and see if I can find this sword" she said as she walked inside.  
"Hey, Arokh, its wide enough for you to fit in here!" she shouted from inside the tunnel. "All we need to do is move the other two stones at either side of the entrance" she continued coming back into daylight.

Arokh strolled over and tried to move the rocks but couldn't. "They are carved around the entrance Rynn. We cannot move them, you will have to go alone."  
"Great. Its not my fault you are too fat to fit" she grumbled.  
"Fat!" Arokh said angrily "how dare you! Don't you call me fat again, you cheeky wench!" he roared.  
Taken aback by Arokh's anger she replied "I was only joking."  
"Yeah. Well, that's not funny either. I take great pride in my personal appearance and that's an insult. Get in there before I do something I'll regret!" He yelled at her, still furious at her recent comment.  
Rynn gave a sheepish look and went into the cave. This time, Arokh did not wish her luck.

Arokh stomped about angrily. His body was slender and almost perfect, there was not a single bit of fat on him. How dare that puny human possibly compare herself with him! He looked down at the bulging muscles on his forelegs and his chest. He was certainly the most handsome dragon around in his opinion and he pitied anyone who dared to say otherwise. He sat down waiting for his bonded to return bearing his teeth in anger; it would be quite some time before they got used to each other. She had also better be quick; he didn't like waiting.  
Inside, Rynn made her way down the dark passage wondering what horrors may lie in wait for her. That sword had better be worth it.

As Rynn walked down the long corridor, it seemed too quiet; somehow she had a feeling that something would go wrong. There were recent inhuman footprints marked into the dusty floor indicating that she probably was not alone in there.  
Without warning her fears were confirmed as a scavenger came bursting through the wall upon hearing Rynn's footsteps. She grabbed the long sword across her back; she wanted to be as far away from the creature as possible but yet still kill the thing.

Rynn crouched and made a forward stab at the creature stabbing it in the chest. Undeterred, it continued to attack but Rynn got closer and swiftly cut off a clawed foot as it made a swipe at her. Standing on the bloody stump that remained, it hit her with the other claw; scavengers always fight to the death. Rynn gritted her teeth in pain even though her armour absorbed most of the attack and struck again leaving the creature bleeding to death on the floor.

She went into the hole the scavenger came from and found a large open cavern that bent round to the left. Determined to find the sword, she followed the cave round, past a large hole in the floor to an area covered in more grimstone crystals. A skeleton lay on the floor harbouring a heath potion, which she quickly collected. She passed the hole again and looking down saw more scavengers in the room below. There were loads of the things. Shuddering, she continued past and ended up at the other end of the stone passage. As she approached, spikes came out of the walls blocking her path.  
"I'm not risking going back in there!" she said to herself and returned to the place where the scavenger had come from.

Peering into the darkness, she saw another short stone tunnel leading to a dead end. "That sword has to be in here" she said quietly. Suddenly she noticed a brick protruding higher than the others on the floor, obviously a switch of some sort and without thinking, stood on it.  
A grating noise of stone upon stone sounded as the 'dead end' opened up revealing a natural cave leading downwards to another fork. She followed and decided to go right taking her to a room with two swinging blades resting next to a stone bridge over a seemingly bottomless pit. She could see the sword at the other side on a pedestal.  
"That's it!" she exclaimed and carefully made her way across the bridge watching the blades to see if they would activate. They didn't.

With a sigh of relief, Rynn picked up the sword, which immediately was wreathed in magical flames as soon as it was in her hands.  
"The man was right, this is awesome! I don't need two of these anymore," she said as she threw one of the long swords away. Smiling to herself, she began to make her way back across the bridge but her triumph was cut abruptly short.  
A loud clanging noise followed by crashing stones sounded as the blades swung into action smashing the bridge preventing her return. The sight of this filled Rynn with dread; the blades would surely kill her if she made contact with them.

Rynn could see that the other side was within jumping distance if she could avoid those blades. She looked up and let loose a couple of arrows at the rope securing them to the cave roof but it did nothing. Sighing with disappointment she realised that she would have to jump between the blades at exactly the right moment. She waited for ten minutes observing the timings before she made her move, landing neatly on the other side completely unscathed.  
_"That was close! But it was definitely worth it"_ she thought.

Rynn decided not to go back the way she came and instead followed the left-hand fork she had come to earlier. It led to a room full of scavengers, two large ones and five or so small ones. "A family of scavengers, how sweet. Pity I'm going be the one to make sure their family tree stops growing," she said with sarcasm as she strode into the room flame sword held firmly in her hands. It made short work of the hideous beasts and she also found that it produced rings of fire similar to the fire crystals. "This will be good against Wartocks," she said as she examined it in close detail noting the markings of dragons carved into the blade.

Rynn stopped to collect any useful belongings left by the human remains and followed the cavern round till she saw daylight below her at the bottom of a steep slope. Stepping on the unstable floor, it suddenly gave way causing her to slide down on her armour to emerge on the canyon floor. Getting up to dust herself down, she looked up to notice two wartocks coming up to attack, and no longer afraid she dove straight in flame sword outstretched.  
The following fight that ensued was short lived leaving both wartocks dead and Rynn only slightly injured. She drank potions to heal and looked up the canyon at the snow capped pine trees and the area where she had entered the cave above.

"Where's that damn dragon? AROKH!" she shouted. Shortly, there was a sound of wingbeats and the dragon landed beside her looking incredibly bored.  
"Do you think I enjoy waiting around?" he grumbled.  
"Stop complaining, if you wanted to do something useful, you could have gone further up the canyon taking out any enemies," Rynn said flatly.  
Arokh snorted and replied "I need you just as much as you need me. Now, let's find that mine and no more messing about," he said impatiently as Rynn climbed onto his back.

Together they flew up the lonely canyon slaying Wartocks, blackwings and destroying catapults as they went. Rynn stopped to collect any items dropped by their enemies. It had now started to snow heavily and it was even settling on Arokh's body.  
"Those blackwings are a real problem! Arokh snarled under his breath as he sent another one crashing to the canyon floor.  
"Why do they keep attacking us Arokh? They are not normally this hostile," Rynn asked.  
"I was thinking the same thing and it's strange why they don't attack Wartocks and Grull. It's probably me though, blackwings are fiercely territorial and will attack any foreign dragon they believe is a threat" Arokh explained.  
"Do you think they are on the Grull's side? Or am I being stupid?" Rynn asked.  
Arokh flicked his eyes back towards her and thought for a moment, she did have a point. "Funny you should mention that. The Dark Union used them as their frontline air troops, like the Grull only in the air. They possessed them making them serve the Dark Lord himself, Navaros. Its possible in the six centuries that I've been sleeping that the Wartocks and Grull have made allies with them though."

Rynn was just about to ask another question when she saw a large wooden gate leading into the mountainside. "Arokh, look. That may be the mine entrance."  
Arokh descended and landed outside flaming a Wartock as he did so.  
"I thought you would have known where this mine was, Rynn" He suggested, believing Rynn was the adventurous kind.  
"No, up here is Wartock territory. Few villagers ventured this far. I haven't ventured more than twenty miles from my home village myself" she answered shaking her head.  
"So, you have not visited the city of Surdana? Assuming it still exists." Arokh asked surprised at her comment.  
"Oh it exists alright, and I know where it is but I've never been" Rynn continued placing her sword onto her back so her hands were free. She had up to now held a sword in her hand during flight so she could help Arokh if needed.  
"You have much to see in the world of Drakan Rynn. Now that we are bonded you will begin to see things you never thought existed." Arokh said softly.  
"Ill look forward to it" Rynn answered as she jumped off to investigate the large wooden door.

"Locked!" She said with disappointment as she returned to Arokh who was scratching himself. Rynn looked away embarrassed. The dragon did not seem to have many manners. She thought that he was probably still trying to impress her but it wasn't working… Yet. He did have a truly magnificent body, perfect in every way and a stunningly handsome head but she still thought his attitude stank.  
"You give up too easily. Let's go further up the canyon, we might find a key on one of the Wartocks." Arokh said placing all four feet on the ground.

A short while later and finding nothing, the soul bound pair landed outside a cave entrance flanked by two flags bearing the mark of the Dark Union.  
"The Dark Union's banner!" Arokh exclaimed. "I never thought I'd see that again."  
"Maybe the wartocks continued to use it after the Dark Union's demise?" Rynn suggested.  
"Maybe. Unless... No, its not possible" Arokh answered in a short tempered voice. It seemed to Rynn that he was worried about something but she didn't ask. She dismounted and went into the cave.  
"Be back soon Arokh," she shouted from inside.  
Arokh grunted in reply and turned around to watch for any adversaries that may have followed them.

A Wartock walked down the path ahead completely unaware of Rynn. He held a shield unlike the ones she had encountered since the raid on her village; he was probably a chieftain or something. She silently crept up behind and landed a hard blow with the flamesword in his unprotected back instantly setting the leather coat and fur aflame. The Wartock howled in pain and spun round to face Rynn who tried to hit him again but he blocked the blow with his shield. He bellowed for his companions but they did not come as Arokh had already dealt with them five minutes ago outside.

Rynn rolled to the side to avoid an incoming blow and quickly rose back to her feet running round to the unprotected axe arm with lightning speed and agility. Rynn was not a strong fighter but she made up for it in speed and accuracy. There was a sickening crunch as Rynn's sword cut through the flesh and hit the bone setting the hairy Wartock arm on fire. Again he roared in pain and ran away clutching his arm.  
"Not so fast!" Rynn cried as she ran after him. He was almost certainly going to get help or heal himself. She landed another blow in the back and the hairy, twice her height creature stumbled and fell to the ground lifeless. Letting out a deep breath, Rynn continued deeper into the Wartock's underground hideout.

She eventually reached a lift going down to an open area stacked with crates and supplies. There was enough for a whole army down there; this was the storage and weapons facility the local forces were using to raid nearby villages. A forge and a couple of anvils were at the far end of the cave and a Wartock was busy making swords, another was checking through the crates. A Grull noticed Rynn watching from the top of the lift and began to jump up and down pointing in her direction.  
"_So much for the stealth approach"_ she thought to herself.

Rynn fired a couple of arrows at the Grull killing it and turned her attention to the un-armoured Wartock killing it with five arrows. She checked her stash; only two arrows were left. She unloaded them into the second Wartock's face and dropped down into the room below using the crates to block her fall.  
Stepping back and pulling the offending missiles out of his snout, the Wartock bellowed and came charging at Rynn but with her being at an advantage point, she simply smiled at him and used the last of her flame crystals.

"What does it take for you to die?" she shouted when she saw that it was still alive. The Wartock did not reply and began to reach for a health potion.  
"Oh no you don't" Rynn said and jumped down and whacked the life from him with the flamesword.

"_Now to see what there is in here_," she thought as she went over to the stack of new weapons, just come off the anvil. Most were too heavy as they were meant for Wartocks but she picked up a Mithril long sword, which she used to replace her standard one. She did not want to be bogged down with too many weapons especially if something better comes along. As she was about to leave, she picked up the key and health potions from the table and returned to Arokh.

"Did you find the key?" Arokh asked.  
"I got A key. I don't know if it's the right one or not" she mumbled showing the key to the dragon.  
"Well, we had better find out then. Come on" he invited. Rynn hesitated for a moment and climbed onto his back. With a rush of wind, Arokh was aloft and he glided down the canyon swooping over the treetops that lined the riverside, the cold mountain air pummelling Rynn's face like lots of tiny needles.

They reached the large wooden door they visited earlier a few moments later and Rynn walked over to a small side door. "Wait here Arokh" she commanded.  
"I can't do much else can I?" he asked sarcastically.  
Rynn didn't reply and tried the key in the lock. It worked much to her relief.  
She pushed open the door and killed the two Grull and Wartock inside and opened the main door so Arokh could come through.  
"Nice work Rynn" he congratulated. "I'm not too fat to fit through this door," he said with a sarcastic smile.

Together, they walked up the tunnel that opened out into a large cavern with a lake at the bottom. A Wartock spotted them from the bridge above and with a thud, shut the gate blocking their progress.  
"It seemed too easy" Arokh remarked nodding his head at the gate.  
"I don't think these are the mines, they must be ahead somewhere" Rynn suggested, noticing the lack of grimstone in the area.  
Arokh glanced through the bars at the Wartock who had just shut the door. "I think you are right. You go on and see if you can get up to that bridge so we can get this door open. You should be able to squeeze through the wooden bars."  
"Can't you just burn them?" Rynn asked.  
"No, it would make too much smoke. It shouldn't be a problem for you to get up there. Or is it?" The dragon asked with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Rynn could not see the dragon's face clearly in the shadows but she could see his eyes twinkling in the torchlight. She knew he had a smirk across his face as he said that last comment though.  
"Not at all" she said quietly and walked between the bars into the massive cavern ahead.

As Rynn stepped through the bars, two Wartocks came up to attack.  
"Get out of the way! Quick!" Arokh shouted from behind her. She quickly sidestepped out of the way as Arokh poked his head through the bars shooting a lethal cloud of flame at the pair of Wartocks engulfing them. Only their cries of pain were heard for a few seconds then silence.  
"Just how I like them, extra crispy!" Arokh said as he turned to look at Rynn.  
She acknowledged him with a nod and a smile, noting his sense of humour and began to follow the path leading up to the bridge above.

The path did not lead straight up to the bridge as expected but instead wound deeper into the mountain past two storage caves where she collected more health potions and a potion of life. She encountered little resistance in the form of a dozen or so Grull but they were no problem for her with her current weapons. Nearing a bend, a ladder in front of her led down into another cavern below and she could hear Wartocks shouting but decided not to go down just yet; she thought that there might be another way in with Arokh. She began to follow the path to see where it went. It would seem luck was on her side as it led straight up to the bridge crossing the underground lake.

The Wartock was getting bored. He had been posted to supervise the passing of prisoners through the caves to the mine ahead and to torture any that gave trouble. Walking back along the bridge for what seemed like the thousandth time that morning he noticed a human coming towards him. Thinking that she was just an escaped prisoner he ran at her, battle axe high in the air hoping for an easy kill. How wrong he was.

Rynn rose up to the challenge and readied her flamesword. She was the first to land a blow but it merely hit the Wartock's shield causing no harm at all. The Wartock counterattacked and hit Rynn in the back knocking her to the ground. Slightly stunned, she rolled over just as the Wartock's axe came crashing down onto her chest causing immense pain. She cried out in agony and simultaneously heard Arokh roar; the injury she sustained affected him through the bond. Determined to win and with a sudden boost of adrenaline, she got back to her feet and began to circle her adversary, her usual tactic in defeating these powerful creatures. She successfully avoided subsequent attacks getting her own in whenever she could and eventually, the Wartock slumped to the floor lifeless.

Sitting down beside her fallen foe breathing heavily, Rynn drank a couple of health potions and examined her armour. Two of the straps holding it together were broken and several holes were cut through the metal chain mail. It would not last much longer.  
She got to her feet, rejuvenated by the health potions and pulled the lever to let Arokh through.

The dragon's wingbeats echoed in the large cavern making them sound louder than normal as he landed beside her. "That was quick, well done" he congratulated. "Shall we go?"  
"Not yet Arokh. Follow me, I saw a ladder leading down to a cavern back there in that tunnel. Its possible they have prisoners down there and I'll try and rescue them." She said disagreeing with the dragon.  
The dragon nodded in reply and followed his bonded to where she saw the ladder leading into the pit. Just as they neared the top, human screams could be heard below.  
"I'd better get down there Arokh" she suggested.  
"Be careful" the dragon replied, concerned for her safety. He knew how dangerous Wartocks could be despite Rynn's almost lifetime experience of fighting them.

Rynn climbed down the ladder into a gore-splattered cave. She noted the Wartock's voices but she could not see them and carefully crept up to a large rock as quietly as possible so she could observe from a safe distance.

The sight that met her eyes sickened her and filled her with rage; human corpses were amongst the mess of blood and gore littering the cave floor. Upper halves of human bodies hung from meat hooks suspended from the ceiling. A couple of men were in cages but she saw that they were dead, one had a hole right through his chest and the other had no arms. She shuddered with disgust and her eyes fell on the Wartocks who had just finished torturing a man to death, fastened to a rack and pinion.  
As she looked closer, the wartocks were not stretching him as the usual method would imply; rather they were slowly winding his arms and legs between two stone wheels crushing them inch by inch. Blood dripped from either end of the torture rack, the man had already had his hands and feet crushed. A single axe was embedded in his chest; which had dealt the final deathblow. Only one could imagine the pain he must have been in.

With a cry of rage, Rynn ran up to the two wartocks and attacked them in a frenzy of fury and fire cast from her magical flame sword. The fight did not last long, Rynn sustained some injuries but she was glad she had dealt pain and death on those responsible for the torture of her villagers. She stood for a moment to catch her breath and went over to the cages and torture racks to see if anyone was still alive but to her dismay they were all dead; there were even children amongst the dead.

_"How sick can you get?"_ Rynn thought to herself as she picked up a child who looked about five years old. She wiped a tear from her face and looked around the cave for any supplies. Lucky for her, some scale mail in almost pristine condition was found in one of the cages. It was a bit tight around the chest as it was meant for men but it did not matter, she wouldn't last against a Wartock without protection. She took one more look around the room and climbed the ladder to meet the waiting Arokh.

"What's the matter Rynn?" he asked when he saw that she was upset.  
"Arokh, it was terrible down there... people from my village, even children slaughtered in the most horrible ways. It was the most sickening thing I have seen. What did those people do to deserve that?" she replied half sobbing.  
"Wartocks, evil creatures." The dragon said shaking his head slowly. "I presume its because they put up a fight or were too weak to work in the mines."  
"Maybe" Rynn sniffed "but it won't bring them back."  
Arokh gently placed one of his front feet onto her shoulder and brushed away the hair over her face with one toe to show his concern and sympathy at her loss. "Don't worry Rynn, we will avenge their deaths by slaying every Wartock we come across. Ill show no mercy for them."  
Surprised at the dragon's compassion and sympathy after what he had said that morning, Rynn took a moment to stand motionless feeling the warmth from his foot on her shoulder. She wasn't too pleased about having his muddy foot near her face and gently pushed it away and looked him in the eyes giving a slight smile. "Thanks" she mumbled. "We should get going, Delon could be getting further and further away."  
"I agree" Arokh said as he dipped to let her onto his back, turning back towards the bridge heading out of the cavern. His feet made a loud 'thud thud thud' as he walked quickly across the bridge; he wanted to be back in the open air as soon as possible.

The tunnel beyond the bridge led by the underground riverside to a large open area in which several ruins of typical village houses lay scattered across the ground. Thick snow had settled on the stones, these houses had been abandoned a long time ago when the Wartocks moved in to reopen the mines.  
As Rynn and Arokh left the caves, two blackwings attacked but Arokh made short work of them sending them crashing to the ground in balls of flame. Arokh landed and let Rynn off to investigate the ruins for discarded supplies.

"Rynn, look. Is that a human over there? It looks like he is moving" Arokh pointed out when he saw a man covered in blood beckoning to them.  
"Yes, it looks like one of our village knights, Ill go and see if he needs help" Rynn suggested, seeing the man Arokh pointed out leaning against a collapsed wall clutching his wound. She walked up to the man with Arokh following behind.

"Jhoni, is that you?" she asked kneeling down to sit in front of the man who painfully tried to sit more upright from his slumped position.  
The man rubbed the blood from his face and replied in a hoarse voice "Rynn, it is you! But...you are riding a dragon!" He exclaimed when he saw Arokh behind her. "I thought it was just one of Atimar's stories."  
"So did I. This is Arokh by the way," she said nodding in the dragon's direction.  
Remembering the legends of the Order well, the man instantly recognised the dragon's name. "The Arokh? You mean Arokh who saved the world!" Jhoni asked in amazement, he couldn't believe his eyes.  
"That's right" Arokh interrupted. "And I'm probably going to save it again" he added with a smirk.  
"By the way, have you seen Delon round here recently?" Rynn asked probing for information.  
"Yes, he was taken through the mines with the other children and prisoners in the early hours of the morning. I managed to get away but as you can see I didn't get very far." He coughed and Rynn's face lit up with joy.

"Where are these mines?" She asked, her heart pounding with excitement.  
Jhoni's hand faltered in the air pointing towards a large wooden door in the mountainside. "It's that large door there but you can't get in that way. The door is locked from the inside but I know another way in which you can reach with the dragon. It's beside the waterfall halfway up the cavern wall up ahead. You should be able to get inside without running into trouble" Jhoni explained coughing violently. "I fell from that ledge and crawled all the way here." He added pointing in the direction of the stone ledge jutting out from the rock face at the side of a waterfall fed from the river coming from the mountains above.

"I wish I could help, but I'm almost done for" he continued coughing up blood again.  
"Don't worry about that, Arokh is more than what I need. Here, take this health vial, it should heal you" Rynn said as she gave him one of the bottles of precious red liquid.  
"Thanks, I appreciate it" He murmured as he drank the contents of the bottle healing most of his injuries. He sat upright from his slumped over position, his strength returning as the healing potion flowed around his body healing wounds. He looked up at them both and smiled.  
"Rynn, you must go. Don't worry about me, Ill be alright. I'm going to try and get to Surdana" he grinned.  
"Well, good luck if you do. The way to the village should be clear but after that I don't know." Rynn replied.  
Jhoni shook her hand and walked past the dragon placing a hand on his side and paused for a moment.  
"It's an honour to meet you Arokh, Sir" he said. Arokh turned his head to look at him with a glaring eye but he did not reply. He turned his head away again back towards Rynn. "_Ignorant bastard_" Jhoni thought and walked back towards where Rynn and Arokh had just come from.

**Chapter Four: Grimstone Mines****  
**  
"There it is Rynn. A cave entrance" Arokh said as he noticed the small hole in the rocks landing on a rocky platform just outside from which Jhoni fell.  
Rynn jumped off and squatted down to crawl through the small opening, turning her head to look back up at Arokh.  
"If I don't come back, watch for me coming out of that large door behind us" she said to her bonded pointing towards the mine entrance.  
"Okay" came the reply. "Be careful."

Rynn crawled into the tunnel edging along until it opened out high enough for her to stand. It was very dark in there and she stood for a few moments to let her eyes adjust to the darkness and continued; the light from her flamesword illuminating the walls with a faint orange glow.  
Something moved in front of her. "_Oh no, not_ more s_piders!"_ she thought. "_Why does every cave have to be populated with these things?_" she asked herself. Unsurprisingly, her flamesword destroyed them easily cutting the bodies into shreds and casting orange yellow flickering light around her as the bodies burst into flame.  
Eventually, the short tunnel led into an abandoned part of the mine closed many centuries ago. The torches fastened to the walls were not lit and cobwebs hung from every place possible. Probing round in the darkness, she came across an old drilling machine. "_I wonder if this thing still works?"_ she thought examining the massive wheeled machine.

She pressed the power switch on the control crystal but nothing happened. "Bah, the power crystal is missing!" she said with dismay as she noticed the hole by the side of the controls. Not one to give up, she began to search the tunnels that ran like a rabbit warren around the abandoned mine. She found useful items such as health potions and some more arrows for her bow but no power crystal. Suddenly, she saw something in a skeleton's hand. "_Yes, that's it"_ she thought as she ran over to pick it up hands trembling with excitement.  
"It doesn't look like much" she said to herself and returned to the machine not giving a second thought about the long forgotten miners who had perished in that place many years ago.

Rynn placed the crystal into the machine and it burst into life with a thunderous roar, the noise echoing around the tunnels like thunder. Shrugging, she pressed the forward lever and the machine lurched forward drilling through the wall right into a crowd of wartocks standing around some explosive barrels which exploded with a thunderous boom. The explosion destroyed the machine but it killed the wartocks and left a hole big enough for Rynn to crawl through to reach the main mine. Jhoni had obviously come from the main mine another way but she wasn't going to search around in the darkness all day.  
Grinning with satisfaction, Rynn crawled through the hole and made her way over to the front door. As Jhoni had said, she was pleased to find it was not guarded and she pulled the lever activating the mechanism lifting the huge door.

Rynn walked outside, she could see Arokh sat up by the cave she had entered. "Arokh!" she shouted to attract his attention. He turned his head to see where his bonded was calling him and flew over to where she was stood. As he landed, a dragon came towards them at alarming speed.  
"A dragon of the Elder Breed!" Arokh exclaimed with amazement observing the large winged beast "I wonder who awoke him or her?"  
"That dragon does not have a rider, Arokh." Rynn added as she squinted against the sun to get a better view of the winged creature.  
"You are right Ry... Huh?" Arokh replied stopping in mid sentence as a ball of poison gas left the green dragon's jaws and came hurtling towards them.  
"Quick get on my back" The dragon demanded. Without hesitating, Rynn obeyed and Arokh lifted into the air firing a warning shot back at the dragon.

"Why do you attack?" he shouted. The dragon did not reply but instead hurled another ball of poison at him. Rynn coughed with the fumes and drank a health potion to heal. "I think it wants to kill us Arokh."  
"No kidding" Arokh said sarcastically returning fire hitting the dragon in the chest burning its scales. A couple more shots were fired between the two and Arokh managed to get in close slashing the creature's side with his talons tearing through the scaly hide like butter. The dragon screamed, blood pouring from the open wound and shortly it began to show signs of weakening from the massive blood loss. "I ask again, for the last time. Why do you attack me?" Arokh shouted making one last attempt at asking why he was attacked but still no reply came.  
"I regret to do this but its my only choice" he said as he breathed a steady stream of flame straight into the dragon's face burning its eyes. It gave a shriek and crashed into the river below with a huge splash.

Suddenly, a thundering noise sounded and a group of large green crystals grew out of the ground next to the dragon's body, lightning flashing from the crystal striking the rocks around it. A much smaller crystal appeared hovering in the air between the surrounding crystal columns.  
"What's that?" Rynn asked, startled by the lightning bolts and rather surprised to see a set of green crystals growing out of the ground.  
Smiling at his bonded, Arokh explained. "It's a rune of power. One appears upon the death of a Dragon of the Elder breed or equally powerful creature. I can use it to gain the breath weapon that dragon had but regrettably it does not last forever. I'm a fire dragon you see."

"Oh. Does it contain any other powers?" Rynn continued, trying to make conversation.  
"No" Arokh snapped impatiently.  
"Well, what happens if you already have poison?" she asked inquisitively.  
Arokh sighed. "You ask a lot of questions don't you? Well, if I already have that ability, then a rune does not form. It's as simple as that. By the way, it does not matter if I or you kill a equally powerful creature as we are effectively one."

Arokh looked down at the dead dragon and flew into the rune. With a blinding flash of light, Arokh absorbed the rune giving him the additional breath weapon of poison. Not as powerful as his own flame breath but useful nevertheless. When it was over, he landed by the mine entrance and stopped, the snow turning red where he stood with the blood from his deceased foe. He slowly wiped his feet in the snow to clean them and turned his head to look back at Rynn.

"What have I done?" He cried in dismay. "I have killed one of my own kind! A female at that."  
Rynn jumped off and stood in front of the great red dragon. "She would have killed you Arokh. You had no choice," she said softly, understanding the dragon's anguish.  
"Maybe, but what I want to know is who awakened her" he grumbled.  
"She might not have gone into eternal sleep when the others did at the end of the Dark Wars" Rynn suggested, trying to think of the simple explanation.  
"Don't be stupid! That was six centuries ago. Even a hatchling hatched then would be long dead. How long do you think we live for?" he snapped angrily.

The dragon saw the look in her eyes and replied "I'm sorry for snapping at you Rynn. I guess you can imagine what I feel like right now."  
Rynn placed her hand on his side. "Well, maybe someone found her soul crystal and accidentally awakened her. The good thing about this is that there are dragons of the Elder Breed in the world. You are not alone for after all!"  
Arokh snorted. "I am alone. Don't you know that it would be a near impossible task to find the soul crystals of all of the dragons of the Order who's riders were killed and then finding their lairs? Most of the crystals will have been lost forever or destroyed. It's just a matter of luck if you stumble across one."  
Again trying to sway Arokh's feelings, Rynn thought of the lore she had been taught. "Well, what about the other Elder Breed dragons, the ones that were neither part of the Order or the Union. Civilian dragon so to speak" she asked.

Arokh gave another sigh. "There were lots of dragons who were neutral to us but they were intelligent beings and spoke fluent draconian and / or human tongue. There were even unbonded dragons that served in the Order of the Flame. They did not have soul crystals, as you need the Dragonstone to create one if a dragon wishes to bond for the first time. These dragons were put to eternal sleep by Mala-Shae the Mother Dragon. Only she can awaken them again."  
"Well, why don't we find this Mother Dragon?" Rynn suggested.  
"If only it was so simple, if only." the Dragon replied seeing Rynn's puzzled expression. "I will explain it to you some other time, but for now we should concentrate on what lies ahead."  
Rynn shrugged and mounted the dragon. "Let's see if we can find Delon."

Together, they walked into the mines, distant noises of mine equipment and pick axes could be heard carried along by the slight breeze that blew through the tunnels. Only the flickering torches and the occasional eerie green glow from the grimstone crystals lining the walls lighted the interior of the mine.  
They flew past a large raised wooden bridge over a deep chasm and began their decent down a steep slope leading into the bowels of the mountain. The temperature also got noticeably colder as they got deeper and Rynn began to shiver; combat kept her warm but she was now really starting to notice the cold.

"I wonder why they are mining this grimstone? I thought it was a banned substance" Rynn asked the dragon as they descended deeper.  
"It was banned, but obviously it's not now. Whatever the Wartocks are using it for cannot be good and it would appear they are mining it in huge quantities. They are obviously up to something and we should stop them especially seem as we are here" Arokh explained as quietly as possible not wanting to draw attention to himself.

Suddenly, pain filled human screams sounded from nearby as they reached a fork in the path. Rynn looked horrified and even Arokh stopped to listen for a moment. The noise sounded again.  
Arokh's sensitive ears listened again to determine the sound's direction. "It's coming from the left. Come on, let's see what's going on" he suggested gaining speed turning down the left-hand fork. A Grull came up to attack but Arokh turned it to ash in seconds. They stopped when the tunnel dead-ended; blocked by rotten wooden boards. The scream sounded again from behind the boards and Rynn jumped off her reptilian companion smashing her way through the flimsy blockade walking into a large cave brightly lit by torches hanging from the ceiling and walls. She hid behind a couple of boulders and watched two wartocks taking to a man bound to a stretching rack. "Another torture chamber" Rynn whispered to herself.

One of the Wartocks looked round startled and Rynn squatted lower hoping he had not seen her. The Wartock turned to the man again and began to speak, Rynn could clearly hear their conversation.  
"One last time, tell me where the Hider is!" one of them demanded.  
The man on the rack sobbed and replied "The Hider is in the east tunnel!"  
The Wartock grunted "You lie. There is no east tunnel!" he nodded to his companion who began to quickly turn the wheel of the rack stretching the man even more. There was a sickening crunch and a horrible tearing noise followed by screams of agony as the man's arms and legs were ripped clean off. Laughing the Wartocks began to head for Rynn still hiding behind the rock. Heart pounding she screamed in rage and ran straight at the two wartocks taking them completely by surprise.

Rynn managed to injure both wartocks before they could react, she ran from the rock and attacking at deadly speed. However, she soon noticed her mistake of rushing into things as four more were just around the corner eating at a table. They noticed the commotion and came to their companion's aid surrounding Rynn laughing and jeering. Swallowing hard she thought it was all over but a thought suddenly struck her. The flamesword had a devastating fire ring attack!

"Take this!" She shouted as she rubbed her finger over the small crystal embedded in the pommel releasing a deadly ring of fire burning all of her adversaries in one blast. The cavern was filled with Wartock cries of pain as their hairy bodies burst into flame. They were too busy trying to put out the flames to notice Rynn release another burst ensuring their painful deaths; a fair price to pay for what they had done to the humans Rynn thought.

As she looked further around the cavern, she noticed a lower section with a few nooks cut into the walls blocked with steel bars - the prison cells. She walked over to where two wooden beams crossed over the area below and walked onto them so she could get a better view. It looked like there were no human prisoners down there; all of the cells were empty bar one in which sat a lone Grull. Two wartocks were on guard walking up and down. Rynn readied her bow and unloaded a few arrows into each one and jumped down to finish them off.

"Get me out of here!" the Grull beckoned from his small prison cell furnished only with a wooden bench upon which sat a single lantern, its candle almost burnt out.  
Rynn turned round upon hearing the creature's plea and crept up to the prison cell door looking out for more Wartocks.  
"Why should I?" she asked the weary looking creature who observed her with tired eyes.  
"I help you" he begged.  
"Oh really, how?" she asked half interested that this disgusting thing might possibly know the whereabouts of her brother.  
"I give you mine map and tell you where prisoners be..."  
"Prisoners?" Rynn asked interrupting him. "Okay, Ill do it. No funny business okay?" she threatened showing the creature her sword. She pulled the lever and the gate opened, the Grull running out to stand in front of her. Rynn noticed his green patchwork kilt torn and bloodstained - evidence of previous battles, most probably with humans. She really had the urge to run him through there and then but had to fight hard with herself not to; she needed information.

"The map" he grunted as he gave Rynn a crudely drawn map on the back of a piece of leather, poorly drawn but useful nevertheless.  
"Big human work in mines. Small human taken to be evaluated" he continued pointing to part of the map indicated by pictures of pickaxes.

Not interested in what the Grull was showing her, she impatiently threatened it with her sword, the creature drawing back in fear. "What do you mean small human evaluated?" she demanded.  
The Grull gave a blank expressionless look, not understanding what the human had asked. "Small humans to be evaluated" he said again.  
"This is hopeless" Rynn sighed. "You find Hider. You find Hider" the Grull suggested. "The Hider. What is it? A human?" Rynn asked, her patience growing thinner by the minute.  
"Hider, is big human. You find" the Grull continued, his face drawing into a wide grin. Rynn thought for a moment "_this Orc obviously knows something and he seems friendly. I'd better trust him._" It was all she had to go on.

"Okay, thanks. Ill be on my way" She finally said and began to climb a nearby stack of crates to reach the area where she killed the six wartocks. She reached the top and looked at the charred remains of the wartocks lying on the dusty floor. She smiled to herself and returned to Arokh.

"Anything exciting happen?" she asked the great red dragon noticing that he seemed pleased to see her.  
"Exciting? Yeah right" he said sarcastically answering her question.  
Rynn smiled at the dragon's sarcasm and jumped onto his back stopping for a moment to examine the map the Grull had gave her. "I found a map of the mines Arokh. We need to go back to that fork and follow the right path, it will lead us to the first mine face."  
The dragon nodded in reply and obeyed Rynn's instructions his feet making a loud thud as he ran through the tunnels.

The silence was suddenly broken by dozens of bats flying down from the ceiling hitting Rynn with their wings as they went past, disturbed from their sleep by the soul bound pair. Rynn screamed and Arokh looked round startled but continued to look ahead when he realised what the noise was. "Surely you are not afraid of them are you?" he asked his companion.  
"Bats? They're hideous" Rynn exclaimed jumping off Arokh's back to open the door in front of them. Arokh grunted and laughed to himself. "Afraid of bats" he said shaking his head in amusement.  
"Yeah, well you must have a phobia of something" Rynn snapped back.  
"Me, a phobia. HAH!" the dragon snorted. "Whatever you say Rynn."

At the other side of the door was a wide tunnel leading slightly upwards. Human mineworkers picked away at grimstone crystals along the tunnel sides, their pickaxes making a clinking sound as they hit the crystal echoing in the freezing mine. As Rynn and Arokh got closer, Rynn could see something strange about the workers, their eyes had a bright green glow; a sign of continued grimstone exposure.

"Are these the people from your village, Rynn" the dragon asked softly, his voice almost a whisper. Rynn looked at the two closest workers but did not recognise them.  
"No, I don't think so Arokh, Ill get off and see if I can talk to them" she said loudly, her voice startling one of the men nearby.  
"Be quiet!" Arokh snapped. "I wouldn't go near them; they aren't human anymore. Their wills have completely gone, just look at their eyes." There was a pause and he continued "They will only mine grimstone and nothing else. Once the grimstone has gone and they are no longer required, they will commit suicide" he whispered.

"NO!" Rynn cried. "We have to save them!"  
"Shut up!" Arokh hissed. "Now you have done it," he said sternly as the workers broke off from their work and came to attack with their pickaxes. Arokh responded by dousing them in a deadly cloud of flame burning their bodies till they exploded in a shower of green blood.  
"What did you do that for!" Rynn exclaimed, horrified that the dragon had just killed her fellow human beings. He was supposed to protect the dragon and human races, not kill them!  
"I was putting them out of their misery. Its not possible to reverse the effects of grimstone, they were effectively dead anyway" Arokh explained, his eyes showing signs of impatience.  
Rynn felt anger well up inside her and she kicked the dragon hard in his side and immediately felt a sharp pain in her ribs. She had hurt him but hurt herself too through the bond.

"Rynn!" Arokh snarled. "Don't do that again!"  
"Don't kill them Arokh, please" she pleaded "We might find a way to save them."  
"How many times do I have to explain things Rynn? I have lived for over 200 years before I was committed to eternal sleep and I know that there is no cure for grimstone poisoning! Now please, stop your whining before I loose my temper" he growled muttering something in draconian under his breath.  
Rynn wiped a tear away and jumped off the dragon's back. She looked up the tunnel towards the mine face and turned back to Arokh who noticed her sadness.  
"I won't kill them unless our lives are threatened. I promise," he eventually said, his eyes still glowing with anger. Arokh was by legend a dragon known to easily loose his temper and whining humans were one thing that really annoyed him.  
Rynn climbed back on his back and they made their way towards the mineface ignoring the slaves as Rynn wanted.

With a sudden crash the gate to the mineface slammed down to the floor, the wooden tree trunks making up the gate shuddering with the impact.  
"It looks like someone has noticed our presence" Rynn said quietly remembering Arokh's comments a few moments ago. Arokh glared through the gate noting the Wartock standing by the lever who had obviously just shut it. His massive head turned to Rynn. "With the noise you made I am not surprised. You had better get off and open this gate" he said in his normal voice not bothering to talk quietly now that the enemy knew they were there.

Rynn slid off the dragon's scales neatly landing on the ground not even bothering to answer him; she was still angry at his attitude towards her a few moments ago. Deep down though, she was beginning to like the great red dragon now that they seemed to have an understanding of each other and that they shared the same sense of humour. The dragon could show compassion and friendship despite his offhand, arrogant nature and that is what mattered in her opinion. She looked the dragon in the eye and walked between the wooden bars of the huge gate into the large mining cavern inside.

The Wartock had turned his back giving Rynn a perfect chance to land the first strike. Now confident in her weapons and her abilities, she made short work of him and collected the health potions he was carrying. His long sword was no better than her own so she decided to leave it; it would seem that there was plenty more available should she need them. Her eyes flicked quickly around the cavern, noting that no one else was around except for a few miners who posed no real threat. Her eyes flicked to a large wooden lever, a steel cable connected to its base running through a channel on the ground to the door mechanism.  
"Ah-ah" Rynn said to herself as she pulled the heavy lever, moving home to its open position with a resounding 'click'. With a large clattering of chains, the huge door slowly lifted and Arokh came through flying over to hover above her, his powerful wings casting a draught blowing the dust off the top of the nearby barrels.

"That was easy" he remarked, landing beside her. "However, there does not seem to be a way out; that gate ahead is locked from the other side" he continued, pointing to a similarly sized gate with his outstretched left foreclaw.  
"Yeah, maybe I can get around to the other side" Rynn suggested. "Let's take a look around."  
The dragon dipped to let her onto his back and they flew around the cavern looking for any more possible exits.  
"Wait Arokh. What's that down there? It looks like a tunnel," Rynn said pointing to a dark area of the mine face where a small tunnel entrance could just be seen.

"You have eyes like a hawk, Rynn" the dragon chuckled.

"They are not as good as yours" she replied as they landed outside the entrance, Rynn jumping off to investigate.

Sounds of a few wartocks could be heard nearby just inside the tunnel. Rynn cautiously peered inside and saw at least five standing in a group talking in their own language, unfortunately one she didn't understand. She turned back to the dragon "Wartocks just ahead, Arokh. It will be a tough fight alone but I have an idea; Ill attract their attention and you burn them as they come through, okay?"  
Arokh grinned and poked his head through to see for himself. "The pleasure is all mine," he said, his red eyes glittering in the torchlight like jewels.  
Rynn ran through the entrance shouting "Over here you great hairy, stupid, foul smelling idiots!" and quickly ran back to the safety of her fiery companion. The plan worked and the furious wartocks came running through the door whilst Arokh burned them one by one. "Feel my searing flame!" he roared as he roasted the last one. It was clear to Rynn that the dragon was enjoying himself.

Rynn shook her head slowly at the Wartock's stupidity. "You would think that the others wouldn't follow if their companions were being killed. They just carry on regardless," she said looking at the charred remains on the dusty floor, still smouldering.  
"Wartocks aren't exactly known for intelligence" the dragon said thoughtfully "but they make up for it in brute force. They are not to be underestimated" he continued absently kicking at one of the dead wartocks head.  
"I kinda noticed that, they are no match for you but they are a challenge for me" Rynn said sarcastically.  
The dragon laughed "I have my own challenges in the air" he said, smoke wisping from his nostrils.  
Rynn smiled and with the coast now clear she disappeared into the small tunnel entrance.  
"Good luck Rynn" Arokh said from behind.

Rynn continued along the dimly lit tunnel eventually coming to a path along the top of a steep underground cliff, which seemingly had no bottom. Rynn cautiously peered over the edge seeing nothing but the odd green glow from the grimstone glittering like emeralds against the black of the dark void. Her heart skipped a beat and she pressed herself against the wall edging down the path avoiding the cliff as much as possible as she had a mild fear of heights.

Rynn pulled out the map she was given earlier; part of it was bloodstained from her recent fight with the Wartock but still legible. Wiping the blood away she examined the map and then her eyes looked up to the sign in front of her showing the way to the second mine face. She was glad to find she was on the right track, these mines seemed to be not particularly complex. Wartocks created them after all.

The path led across a wooden bridge and out into the open, the fresh mountain air making a change from the stuffy mines, which smelt of Wartocks, sweat and rotting corpses. The snow had stopped falling and several miners were hacking away at slabs of grimstone embedded in the rocks of the circular rocky basin cut into the mountain itself. The basin was formed by centuries of mining; this part of the mine had been used for thousands of years, well before the Order.

A couple of wartocks were keeping watch over the miners which Rynn defeated with ease taking only minor injuries herself. Examining the map, Rynn found that this was obviously the second mine face and a tunnel seemed to eventually go round to the other side of the gate Arokh mentioned. There was a lot to go through to get to it however.

Rynn smashed open a couple of nearby barrels gaining a fire crystal and looked around for the tunnel entrance to the rest of the mines. Seeing nothing at ground level, her eyes gazed up to the top of the basin where a path carved into the rock led round the edge behind a cliff. "_That must be it_" Rynn thought to herself. The only way up was a wooden tower with three platforms interconnected with ladders erected from the basin floor. The only enemy in sight was a lone Grull on the top platform, which, by the look of things it was only necessary to get to the second platform. Easy she thought.

Rynn began to climb the ladders, creaking with every step. They were designed to hold the weight of a Wartock so surely they wouldn't break. Eventually, she reached the second platform but the bridge across to the opposite tunnel had been retracted but the gap was short enough to jump if she made a run at it. She was much lighter than a Wartock and could make it.

With a boost of confidence, she backed up and ran leaping across neatly landing on the other side unscathed. "Nice try!" she shouted back at the Grull on the third platform above. He just responded by waving his club in the air and grunting to another one higher up on the ledge. Rynn ignored him and began to continue up the tunnel but soon found out why she had made a grave mistake of letting the creature live. A huge rock came thundering down the tunnel, pushed from the ledge, which obviously was the other end. Rynn quickly ducked into a small alcove, the rock missing her by inches as it hurtled past. A huge crash was heard followed by the sound of splintering wood; the rock had smashed straight into the tower! Laughing at the Grull's stupidity she ran back down the tunnel in time to see the structure go crashing down to the floor below. Now, the only way was forwards, but she was confident she was going the right way.

Still smiling she went back up the tunnel to the ledge killing the Grull who pushed the rock as she past and followed the ledge deeper into the mine. Eventually, she came to a fork in the path and a couple of signs pointed left and right. Pulling out the map again, it looked like one went to the grimstone processing rooms and the other to the barracks. Seeming as she was low on arrows and her flame sword was getting worn out, she decided to go to the barracks to see what she could find. With a bit of luck, there wouldn't be many Wartocks around, as they would all be working. She would go back for Arokh later, he would just have to wait a little while longer.

Rynn reached the barracks a good ten minutes later dealing with Wartocks as she went. She gained a few homing arrows, guided by magic and a huge long sword, which she added to her collection found in storage crates littering the area.

Entering the barracks, she was alerted by the sound of heavy snoring from sleeping Wartocks. Deciding to follow the sounds, Rynn found several wartocks sleeping on the floor in one of the quarters. "_A perfect chance to use this_" she thought to herself as she reached for the flame crystal which she had recently found. Smiling to herself, she slowly crept into the middle of the room treading as softly as she could. Despite her best efforts, her footsteps could easily be heard on the stones magnified by the echoing of the small room. "Take this!" she shouted and let loose a blast of flame making the wartocks wake up instantly; their cries of surprise and pain filling the room. Not waiting for them to reach their weapons, she let loose another two of the five charges in the crystal and whipped out her sword finishing them off before they could retaliate.  
She put her hand over her mouth to mask the smoke and left the room walking into the opposite dining quarters.

The dining room was empty bar a single wooden table in the middle of the room surrounded by 12 chairs, some smaller than others; the Grull and Wartocks shared the same barracks. Rynn suddenly noticed she was very hungry, her worry of Delon's safety put her off thinking of food. Fortunately some fresh cooked meat lay on one of the plates, whoever it belonged to wasn't far away. She reached over and ate as much as she could before a Grull coming in the door behind her interrupted her short snack. She saw the reflection in the shiny metal plate and whipped round with her sword cutting the creature's head off in one sweep. Put off the rest of her new found meal, she left to explore the one remaining room that was of any use; the armoury.

Rynn was disappointed to find the room empty of weapons bar a single bow, which she used to replace her worn longbow. Walking round the room, she was relieved to find several pieces of chain mail hung on the wall all different sizes, she was even able to find one that fitted her almost perfectly. As she was about to leave, she noticed a key on a pedestal. "_I wonder what this is for? Well it does not look like anyone is using it, Ill take it" _she thought as she grabbed the key.  
The moment the key left the pedestal, the iron gate in the doorway closed with a clang and the torches in the room flickered and went out. A mild panic began in Rynn's throat. She had obviously activated a trap or something and was left in darkness awaiting her fate. She swallowed hard and then a knight clad in thick armour materialising in front of her suddenly broke the silence.

"Who are you?" She asked whilst reaching for her flamesword. The light it gave off illuminated the room slightly with its flickering flames. The Knight did not reply and drew a flaming spear, which he hurled at Rynn missing her by inches. She could feel the heat of the flames on her legs.

"What the hell?" She muttered under her breath and ran behind a dividing wall drawing her bow and equipping it with the magic arrows. The clinking sound of the knight's armour came closer as he investigated where his prey had gone. Rynn jumped out from the wall unloading arrows as fast as she could as the knight ran towards her. The room was lit up brightly by the green-blue trails left by the magical arrows as they shot from the bow seeking out their target like snakes writing in the darkness. The Knight grunted as each one hit home piercing the armour.

The knight was almost upon her when he drew two flameswords similar to her own but distinctly larger. Rynn responded by drawing her own flamesword, her best armour piercing weapon she possessed. Suddenly the knight said something like "ten huurr!" and a devastating ring of fire spiralled out from his feet; Rynn now knew what it was like for a Wartock to be on the receiving end of her flamesword's fire ring attack. She quickly did a backwards flip avoiding most of the fire but it was too quick for her and her legs were engulfed in flames burning the skin. She shrieked in agony and ran at the flame knight who attacked with lightning speed; his dual flameswords lighting the dark room with vivid yellow light. Rynn tried to avoid his attacks as much as possible but suffered massive burns to her chest and back. With a final cry, she drove her sword into the knight's eyeslits killing him instantly. She fell to the floor and crawled over to where her backpack lay on the floor, ripped off by the knight's sword.

Rynn was almost done for, she could feel her breathing getting slower and slower and her vision started to blur. A searing pain went through her head and her leg hurt where the exposed burnt skin scraped on the floor. All she had to do was drink a potion of life and she would be fine.

Shouts of nearby wartocks came closer and the gate into the armoury began to slowly open just as Rynn reached her backpack. She fumbled about and grabbed a vial of the vital blue liquid pulling the cork from the bottle with desperate hands. With a sigh of relief, she drank its contents instantly curing her injuries, the pain mostly drifting away. She looked at the dead knight not believing how lucky she was to survive that fight. She certainly did not want to meet another one of them.  
Rynn reached down and put on her backpack and left the room; now would be a good time to go back to Arokh.

Rynn examined the map and saw that there was no way out other than the way she came. The left-hand path at the fork she came to earlier would take her through a third mine face before she got to Arokh. She could see that there was also some sort of Grimstone processing equipment in that area too. "_Maybe that is where the hider is_" she wondered. Confident that she had killed all of the Wartocks and Grull in the area, she quickly began to head for the forked path; the sooner she got back to the safety of her dragon the better.

The lift leading from the barracks slowly came to a rest on the cave floor the winding mechanism creaking to a stop with a clank as the lever moved to the down position. Rynn crept out of the cave looking for any enemies that may of followed her; she was only a short distance from the forked path which lay at the other side of the open arena below. Suddenly, a large booming noise sounded, like something heavy was walking around. Small stones were shook loose from rocky overhangs falling onto the path and a mining cart's brakes were released with the vibration sending it rolling down the path beside her. Cautiously, she peered round a rock overlooking the area a few feet below. There was the biggest creature she had ever seen; it was hairy like a Wartock and walked like an ape, its fists almost scraping on the ground. Below its tusks, its huge mouth opened and uttered a resounding roar that could be heard for miles. She had been spotted.

"What the hell is that?" she said out aloud and ran back into the safety of the cave just as a huge boulder crashed into the wall showering her in fragments of rock. The creature stomped about throwing more rocks with such force that all of them exploded on the arena walls. Rynn pressed herself against the cave wall a few feet from the entrance as rock fragments continued to crash through missing her by only inches. Eventually, the assault stopped. Blinking, she crept back to the rock and saw that a couple of wartocks had come into the arena from the other side. The giant was still stomping around, seemingly run out of things to throw.

Rynn grinned and readied her bow to fill the hideous thing with arrows but all of a sudden, the creature picked up one of the wartocks and hurled it at her. "Yearrghhh!" the Wartock yelled as he sailed through the air splattering on the rocks nearby showering Rynn with blood. The other Wartock had wisely fled for his life and the giant no longer had things to throw at her. It bellowed again and began to run up the path towards her. "Oh crap" Rynn muttered wiping the Wartock's blood from her face running back into the cave frantically finding somewhere to hide. She squatted behind some nearby crates just as the giant's imposing figure loomed in the doorway. "_He's too big to fit_" Rynn realised with relief.

Suddenly, she remembered the greatsword and had an idea; the sword she found earlier had a wonderfully long blade, long enough to hit the creature's legs whilst remaining in the safety of the cave. She equipped it and began to run backwards and forwards hacking away at the creature's legs till the bone were visible. Now, bleeding heavily, the creature began to retreat slowly roaring in pain but Rynn wasn't going to let it get away; she equipped her bow picking up some nearby poison arrows and unloaded them into its back. The creature finally gave a groan and fell to the floor with a crash, the ground shaking like a mini earthquake.

Rynn leant on her sword and breathed out heavily; she wondered what that thing was and how it managed to get there in the first place, the two tunnels leading to the arena were too small for it to fit through. Shrugging, she headed back to the fork and took the path leading to the third mineface, according to the map only moments away from Arokh.

As she ventured up the tunnel, she encountered a couple of wartocks but they were no match for her long sword. It was a heavy weapon and couldn't be used for long without tiring her out but it prevented her from being hit whilst fighting due to its long blade. She walked out of the end of the tunnel and stopped to observe the scene below her. A muddy path wound round the mineface towards where Arokh was waiting and a fork led off to another door that she presumed was the processing area.  
"That can wait, I need Arokh first" she said to herself as she headed down the path. A unexpected shriek sounded from above and a ball of poisonous gas hit the ground nearby. _A Blackwing!_  
Rynn looked up with horror and saw the feathered creature hovering nearby. She would have no chance against it without Arokh; she had used up all of her arrows. There was only one thing to do; make a run for it.

Summoning up all of her strength, she ran down the muddy path pursued by her aerial oppressor hurling poisonous fumes at her as she went. She put her weapons away and grabbed a couple of health potions so she could drink them on the run; Arokh wasn't far away now. A couple of Wartocks came up ahead to attack but hung back when they saw the blackwing behind; the blast radius of its attacks was devastating to any nearby beings. The tunnel entrance finally loomed ahead after what seemed like an eternity of running and Rynn literally dove in looking back with relief that the blackwing hadn't followed. Wiping her brow, she peered into the dark tunnel letting her eyes adjust to the sudden change of light level.

She blinked and squinted into the tunnel noticing a group of Wartocks running towards her to attack so the agile human quickly grabbed the fire crystal letting off the two remaining charges and finishing them off with the long sword. Heart racing she ran down the tunnel to the wooden gate and pulled the lever beside it.  
"Arokh!" she shouted into the cavern; she was back at the first mineface recognising the layout of the cavern. The dragon lazily sauntered over and yawned.  
"What have you been up to? I felt that you got into serious trouble whilst you were away; I thought my time had come already" he questioned, his head cocked to one side when he noticed her bloodstained clothes.  
"Slaying just about every Wartock in this damn mine. The pain you felt was probably when I was attacked by a knight wielding dual flame swords similar to this one" Rynn said whilst holding out the flame sword to show Arokh. "He also threw flaming spears from a distance that appeared from nowhere" she added shaking some debris from her hair.

The dragon suddenly gave a look of horror and stared at the ground and groaned. He glanced back up at his companion and gave a faint smile.  
"What's up, Arokh?" she asked noting his sudden dismay.  
"What you encountered was probably a flame knight. They were members of the Dark Union; basically suits of armour possessed by a spirit. They were typically commanders who looked over the front line troops of Grull and Wartocks but some served the Dark Lord, Navaros himself."  
The dragon paused and noticed Rynn's blank expression and continued to explain "Only a sorcerer or mage is capable of bringing them to life. I don't suppose you found any more did you?" he asked cautiously.

"No, but I just fought this gigantic creature, some 10 times bigger than a Wartock" Rynn remarked whilst climbing onto Arokh's back, the warmth offering comfort and relief.  
"What did the creature look like, Rynn?" the dragon asked with concern.  
"Big, brown hair all over its body and a huge mouth! He also threw rocks and even Wartocks at me" she answered shaking her head and tidying her hair the best she could.  
The dragon gave a sigh "It might be a giant, Rynn. A race of creatures that originated from the eastern wild lands not usually found in these cold lands. They too served the Dark Union, possessed by Navaros's magic." There was a brief pause whilst he took a breath thinking that it could be possible that they have been breeding and spread to other lands. "Have you seen one before?" he questioned, his head turning round to face his rider.  
"No" was the short, immediate reply.

"Rynn, it would seem that there is something sinister going on, the awakened Elder Breed Dragon, the Flame Knight, the mining of the grimstone and the Giant. It's all starting to make sense," Arokh said thoughtfully.  
"Atimar did say the Order would be the only way of defeating this evil" Rynn pointed out.  
"I would have really liked to talk with Atimar, I guess he knew a lot about the Order. But seem as he is dead, we will have to wait and see what we come across. There is obviously a powerful mage or sorcerer behind all of this but there's only one way to confirm it, that is for me to see for myself."  
The dragon looked at Rynn again and said sternly "There almost certainly will be difficult battles ahead and it will not be easy. Are you sure you are up to the task?"  
Rynn nodded "My brother may be in grave danger. That thought alone will keep me going. I am a capable fighter and can deal with Grull and Wartocks easily."

Arokh grunted in reply. "I would agree you are a good fighter, I don't doubt that and I have confidence in you. Come on Rynn, let's get going" Arokh suggested, his voice booming in the tunnel.  
"Be careful Arokh, there's a blackwing outside" she warned.  
Arokh snorted. "Nothing I can't take care of."

The pair left the tunnel Arokh attacking the blackwing on sight, easily killing it in a few blasts of flame. He hovered in the air and shot balls of flame at the Wartocks below, making it easier for his bonded companion.  
"I guess you didn't find Delon," he said abruptly. "He must have been taken elsewhere, there is a gateway the Dark Union used to use to the south-eastern continent not far from here."  
Rynn gave a surprised look "The south-eastern continent is where Drakan City is isn't it?" She asked with interest.  
"Yes, it used to be the headquarters of the Order some 35 years after the Order was formed. The Order originated from near here though, in the Surdana province. You know when villagers made allies with the neighbouring dragons some one thousand years ago? Arokh explained, his voice almost a whisper.  
"I never took a lot of notice of the legends to be honest, I thought it was a load of silly stories. However I was wrong" Rynn answered shuffling about on his back.  
"Well, let's go then" Arokh suggested as he began to make his way to the passageway between the mountains.

"Wait! We are not done yet Arokh, we need to find the Hider. A Grull told me about him, he knows where my brother is" Rynn said, tapping the dragon on the neck.  
"It may be a trap, I wouldn't trust a Grull at all, you would be stupid to believe anything one told you." Arokh laughed scornfully.  
"Well, I'm going to check it out anyway. Land by that door down there" Rynn commanded pointing to the door leading to the processing rooms.  
"Do as you please. But don't come crying to me when it doesn't work out" the dragon growled.  
"_Sarcastic git_" Rynn thought to herself as she jumped off to open the door.  
"Locked!" she said turning to Arokh who rolled his eyes and looked away. "_Try the key_" she thought as she pulled the key guarded by the knight from her pocket. She inserted it into the lock and the door swung open with a creak of its rusting hinges. "_There must be something important in here for it to be guarded so well"_ she thought. "_The Hider has to be in here._"

The sound of the grimstone processing plant was getting louder as Rynn progressed down the wide tunnel, the walls wet with rain and snow that had soaked through the ground and found its way into the mine system. Rynn placed one hand on the slimy, wet wall and crouched behind a nearby crate when she heard voices ahead. Her feet made slight squelching noises on the muddy floor as she moved around for a better view.

A Grull was sleeping on the tunnel floor, on one of the only dry parts. Another came up to him and immediately started shouting and threatening him; he had obviously fallen asleep on duty and the other Grull was not best pleased. Smiling at the amusing scene, Rynn continued to observe as one of the Grull went up to the huge crushing machine and activated it. A thunderous roar echoed around the tunnels as it burst into life, occasional splintering noises could be heard as the raw grimstone was crushed into small fragments under the huge hammers.

Running out from her hiding place, Rynn ran at the two Grull, taking advantage of the noise of the machine to get the upper hand. She dealt with them in a matter of seconds and looked around the cave she was now in. A rail track ran through the cave leading to two boarded up tunnels and a further track led back the way she came but she noticed the tracks had not been used for a while, they were all broken and rusty. The two tunnels both had signs on the boarded entrances stating 'Danger! Keep out!' in three separate languages.  
Slightly disappointed, Rynn examined her map and saw that the tunnels were not shown, it would not be a good idea to venture through; the tunnels had been closed for a reason and _were_ probably too dangerous.

"_No way out"_ Rynn thought to herself as she examined the map again. "_Wait a minute, yes. There is another way,"_ she thought as another route was shown leading from the cave she was in. Her eyes looked around the cave and she eventually spotted a small tunnel above the crusher. The only problem was the ladder leading up to it was broken; the only other way was to walk along the top of the crusher _as it was moving up and down!_  
"Bah" Rynn snorted as she climbed onto the machine. Below her was a conveyor belt bringing grimstone to be crushed under the four hammers ahead of her. She could make it if she used the tops of the hammers as stepping stones but if she fell, it would mean certain death. Observing the timings of the huge hammers she jumped onto the first, jumping off to the second just as it came up to the sharp ceiling which would squash her above. The next two were easy and she made a final leap from the fourth hammer into the tunnel, neatly landing in some algae slipping and falling on her back knocking the breath out of her for a moment.

"That wasn't so hard," she said as she picked herself up and tidied her hair. The mine tunnel ahead obviously hadn't been used for years either; only a few scavengers made their homes here. Suddenly the ground gave way and Rynn fell down a steep slope eventually landing on a rocky platform in almost total darkness. She looked around not moving in case she fell into a deep pit or ravine; the only light came from the green glow of grimstone below. More sounds of loose rocks echoed in the darkness and Rynn found herself sliding again eventually bursting through a thin ceiling and landing on a well lit path. She immediately jumped to her feet; her new surroundings could well be populated with more Wartocks. Finding nothing except a huge grimstone crystal surrounded by four smaller ones suspended from the ceiling beside her, she followed the path to see where it led.

"Over here" a man's voice said, breaking the silence.  
Rynn turned her head to see a middle aged man leaning against a mine cart. It was not someone she knew and he looked weak and tired.  
"The Hider I presume?" she asked.  
The man looked up and smiled "At least that's what the Wartocks call me. I have been hiding down here for four days now without food or water."  
Rynn gave a surprised look "Why are you hiding?" she asked. The man frowned and Rynn suddenly realised the stupid question she had just asked. "Why do you think? I don't want to be possessed by that grimstone; my mind isn't completely gone… yet. Plus I know things" he grinned.  
Rynn's perked up for a moment "Do you know where the children were taken?" she asked hoping that finally she could find Delon.  
The man's eyes looked vacant for a moment as he remembered the incidents over the past few days then he turned his head to look at her and gave a faint grin. "Yes, the children were taken through the wastelands to the east known as the grotto - there lies a gateway to the Eastern Archipelago. Some Dark Lord or something wants them, god only knows what for."

Rynn leaned forward "Are there any still here?" she asked impatiently, her hopes suddenly dashed by the news that Delon was still probably miles away and this 'Dark Lord' did not sound too promising.  
"No" the man groaned, his voice getting weaker. "Listen girl, you cannot escape the mines, a forcefield blocks the way to the Grotto. You must disable it; the easiest way is to destroy the power generator back there. It's used to power all forcefields and mine equipment and destroying it will stop the Wartocks."  
Rynn shrugged, briefly looking back to the five grimstone crystals. "Okay, how do I do it?"  
The Hider coughed violently and continued to explain. "You must turn off the switches on the four crystals surrounding the main power crystal. But be careful, disabling the switches will cause the electricity to arc and you could be hit. Furthermore, once the four switches are disabled, the power crystal will overload resulting in an explosion. You must leave immediately after the fourth one is down as the mines will collapse."

Rynn looked on concerned "What about you and the other miners?"  
"We are dead already, the effects of grimstone is like a slow poison and it cannot be cured. Don't worry about us. Now, you must go" the man rasped and looked away. He leant back on the cart and let out a deep sigh. Rynn paused for a moment realising the man was correct; nothing could save the enslaved human miners. She took one last look at the man giving a slight smile and began to head for the generator.

Standing at the edge of the path, she could see that the entire thing was suspended above a deep pit by ropes and power cables leading upwards into the darkness. Electricity had been used in Drakan before back in the days of the Order, it was something she knew about but wasn't familiar; it was once used to power large industrial cities but technology like electricity hadn't been used since the fall of Navaros. The only thing that served as fuel and light now was good old fire and magic.

Rynn jumped onto the first platform, the crystal suspended below the wooden planks she was standing on. The other three crystals were too high to jump to so she wound the platform higher using the lever connected to the rope holding it to the roof. Almost straightaway, the electric lights began to dim; the position of the four crystals must be critical. Their position must be used to regulate the power output Rynn thought. Once the platform was high enough, Rynn pulled the switch. Electricity began to arc like the man said and she quickly jumped down to the second platform hitting the switch as she went. Jumping to the third, she was hit, the shock almost throwing her from the platform.

Finally, Rynn arrived at the fourth switch and drawing a sharp breath, pulled it. The electricity began to jump all over, arcs hitting the cave walls. "Now to get out of here," Rynn said as she ran up the path ahead hoping it would lead to the surface. The ground began to shake, as the crystal's power was unleashed uncontrolled; a rock came crashing down the path, Rynn dodging it just in time. As she ran up the dusty path, she spotted an awesome looking mace, which was too good to miss. Crouching briefly to collect it she didn't even stop to examine it in detail, time was of the essence.  
Stones and rocks began to fall from the roof. Heart pounding, she summoned up all the energy she had and ran faster than she ever thought she could, the fear of being in there when the crystal went up drove her forward.

Eventually, she ran out of the tunnel into daylight. "Arokh! Where are you?" she shouted.  
"I'm right here Rynn" came the welcoming reply from above. She was really glad to see him now. She ran up to him and jumped on his back.  
"No time for talking Arokh, just fly towards the grotto. We need to get out of here now!" she demanded still holding the mace she found. Arokh didn't argue; he knew something was wrong when he felt the rumbling of the ground through his feet. He quickly flew into the air and flew through the short canyon and through the previously blocked forcefield just as the ground erupted behind them in a shower of rocks and debris.

**Chapter Five: The Grotto  
**  
"Now I would like to know what you did to that mine!" Arokh said while flying through the quiet canyon.  
"Nothing special" Rynn answered quickly.  
"Demolition is now nothing special to you, huh?" Arokh replied with a faint grin.  
"In case you won't hurry enough to Grotto, you'll know what am I like when I'm the Lady of Demolition!" Rynn murmured loudly. Arokh could only wonder what was this haste was good for... he didn't like this. He was hungry, he wanted to rest a little and was waiting for some explanation anyway. Yet, there was nothing to do with a command he got - besides completing it.

A few moments after Arokh had a strange feeling... like if he was being watched by some beings. Looking around he realised how right the feeling was - three crow dragons were heading towards him.  
"Here comes trouble! Hold tight Rynn" the red dragon shouted, and dived in a sharp angle, shooting fire at his attackers meanwhile.  
The first crow dragon could hardly evade the shots with rising his altitude, but the second was caught in the deadly flames, and soon fall down with a deafening scream. The third had a little more tactical sense, and decided to attack his foe from where he was the most defenceless - from behind. He quickly began to fly a bit further from Arokh, while he made a half circle in the air.  
Arokh was occupied finishing the first crow dragon so he didn't notice the trick. He only noticed the dragon behind him when a poison ball hit his back.  
"I hate when this happens" Rynn coughed, while she was trying to not breathe in the poisonous air.  
"She tells me" Arokh grunted, and decided to quickly end the combat, which was becoming painful to him.  
The crow dragon in front of him breathed poison at him, so Arokh took a deep breath and flew at the dragon. A good timed slash with his front arms, and the now headless crow dragon was lying on the bloody snow under them. Arokh wasn't fast enough though, since the crow dragon behind him could spit another poison ball at him, which hit Arokh's left wing.  
Arokh suddenly lost stability due to the hit, and nearly flew into a tree while he was trying to regain his lost stability in the air.  
"He is still on us!" Rynn shouted looking back.  
"Shoot him down then! Must I do everything!" Arokh roared.  
"Do you think I can aim while you are doing such aggressive movements!" Rynn shouted back. Arokh wondered what did he do to deserve such a rider as punishment, but he could not wonder too long, as another ball of poison nearly hit his head. He quickly halted, and turned back. The crow dragon was surprised by the movement, and nearly ran into Arokh, who was waiting for this. The red dragon took a deep breath, and breathed a long stream of fire at the unlucky crow dragon, which quickly became no more than a big pile of ash.  
"I think you should do something about my wounds" Arokh said as he realised the fight was over "I feel quite bad."  
"Need the delicate touch of a woman, huh?" Rynn made a faint smile "It seems you do need me sometimes!"  
Arokh looked back with killer eyes, and said "Less talk and more action if I can ask... I'm feeling bad and I don't like this!"  
"I know how you feel and I neither like it!" Rynn said, and took a healing potion from her backpack, then drank it.  
"Better" Arokh said, then asked "Where now?"

"Anywhere just through this thing" Rynn replied.  
"Rushy, aren't we?" Arokh murmured again. He was becoming less and less satisfied as Rynn was becoming pushy.  
"My brother is here!" Rynn cried out.  
"Your brother? Here!" Arokh laughed "Well, something original. And who told you this foolishness?"  
"The Hider" Rynn replied "And speak with more respect about my brother!"  
"If your brother would be here, he would have probably frozen to death now. Since I don't think the wartocks would give the prisoners nice, warm clothes." Arokh replied. "I thought your common sense would be better than your fighting skills..."  
For a moment Rynn was thinking what the dragon said, but in the next moment her face became red with anger, realising what Arokh said.  
"Now listen you big fat reptile" she shouted "it was I who got YOU out from that stone and not YOU who got ME out! So be so nice and do what I say in silence or I will wrap your mouth with the first rope I find!"  
Arokh gave her a toothy grin, and flew on, while thought "I am NOT fat!"

He was only flying for a short while, when he noticed something green membrane looking thing blocking the way.  
"What is that thing... and what does it do?" Rynn asked.  
"Looks like some sort of shielding to me... I'm sorry but I can't get through it" Arokh said shaking his head.  
"There has to be a way to disable or deactivate it" Rynn suggested, not wanting to give up easily.  
"Yes, there should be. But I wouldn't be surprised if it would be on the other side of it" Arokh said. Rynn sighed with despair. Would this be a dead-end? If so, they wasted much time... and they would have to find another path to follow, which would mean much more time wasted. And if they waste too much time, Delon will be killed or enslaved... or something much worse.  
While chasing her dark thoughts, Rynn suddenly noticed a passage in the wall of the hill. Small for a dragon, but big enough for a human.  
"Arokh, land there. That passage looks interesting to me... maybe it will lead to the deactivator" Rynn said. Arokh quickly looked around searching for the door, then nodded.  
"Alright, be careful" the red dragon said after Rynn dismounted him on the ground.  
"You stay here and try not to get yourself killed, right?" Rynn said and ran inwards.

The passage was a bit dark, but she could see enough. There were some crates inside, and a Wartock guard standing a few steps far from him. The passage went on in a left turn, but Rynn hoped there wouldn't be more guards inside. She took her mace into her hands, and crept up behind the lone guard. A quick hit at the neck, a loud crack, and the guard collapsed with a broken neck. A harsh roar told Rynn that there were more guards inside the passage, so she should still be wary of enemies.

The Wartock saw his companion collapsing, and realised there was an intruder inside. He took his weapon into hands, made a loud battle cry and ran towards the outsider. He was quite surprised to find a little human girl here, deep within the borders of the Union's land. It did not really matter to him though - he raised his weapon, and slashed at the human. To his astonishment, the human was faster than he was, faster enough to dodge the weapon and now run backwards, out from the passage. The Wartock laughed as he saw Rynn run away but he followed hoping for an easy kill. But he soon dropped his weapon when he reached outside. The girl was standing next to a big red dragon.  
Before the Wartock could do anything, the flames covered him, and for him the war was already over.

"Fried Wartock. Even though I'm now hungry, I'd never eat such a thing," Arokh said with disgust.  
"Perhaps you are not hungry enough" Rynn laughed and ran back into the passage, saying "Thanks!" meanwhile.  
"I don't need thanks, rather food now" Arokh murmured as he lied down into the snow. Even though he could not risk falling asleep, it was nice to rest his feet and wings for a little while.

Rynn was now becoming more aware of the temperature - she was starting to shiver. The surrounding rocks were as cold as the snow on them, and she had no warm clothes on. She quickly looted the passage, and went on. She found a bridge on the other side, but when she was just passing through, an Orc screaming in terror flew by. Then a second. Then a third.  
"I never knew orcs can fly" Rynn mumbled. Suddenly an exploding barrel crashed to the side of the hill, not far from her. Looking down she noticed why the orcs were flying: a huge beast looking like the giant encountered earlier was throwing them. Not really fancying the thought of standing bombarded in the middle of a bridge, Rynn quickly ran back into the passage. There she began to wonder: what to do now? If she wanted to go on from this godforsaken place, she had to go through the bridge, find the switch to deactivate the shield. But there was that big creature... how did Arokh call it? Giant. "I will solve it somehow... I'll have to" Rynn encouraged herself, and ran through the bridge with full haste. She made it without damage, even though a barrel nearly hit her. On the other side she had another unpleasant surprise: Wartock guards with already drawn weapons, waiting for her.  
"Come, I show you what's fighting is about!" Rynn shouted, and took her mace into her hands.

The mace proved to me a much more useful weapon than the flame sword Rynn found as she sliced a Wartock's arm off with one hit. His companion was just as easily defeated; the Mithril mace head piercing the armour like it was made of paper. Rynn was certainly glad she picked it up as she ran out of the mine, it would have been a grave mistake if she passed it by.  
Another Wartock came sailing through the air thrown by the giant below missing Rynn by inches. She readied her bow and filled the thing with arrows, hiding behind a nearby tree to avoid the flying rocks and Wartocks. At least it made things easier for her.

The last arrow left Rynn's bow and she jumped down the slope, sliding in the snow and running between two trees. The Giant came closer but the trees protected her from harm. When the creature's back was turned, she ran out from her hiding place and hit the Giant's legs with the mace. One hit was enough to kill the already weakened creature. It crashed to the ground making Rynn stumble and fall flat on her face in the snow.  
"Ugh!" she said to herself as he picked herself up and brushed the snow from her armour realising that the creature had almost fallen on her. She hadn't thought of that and made a mental note to remember that should she face another.

Looking round for more enemies, Rynn continued through the short valley glad that nothing came for a fight. At the end of the valley another giant stood on the hill to the left but there was no way Rynn could reach it yet. She turned to the right and ran down the path as quickly as she could towards the grimstone forcefield. She began to panic when there was no switch to be found but as she dodged an exploding barrel, to her surprise stepped on a hidden floor switch and the barrier dissolved.

"Arokh, come quickly!" she shouted in desperation.  
"I hear you" came a distant reply. She could still see the dragon sitting where she had left him. He slowly flew over and through the gate and landed to let Rynn onto his back but he stopped dead when he saw the giant. He turned and flew back through the gate.  
"Where are you going" Rynn asked. "We have been this way, I thought we were finding this gateway to the southeastern continent!"  
"I know of a place back there. I want to stop for a moment and it would be beneficial for us to explore a bit" The dragon snapped.

"How are you for weapons?" Arokh continued his voice sounding a little hoarse.  
Rynn laughed and showed the dragon the mace she had found. His great head turned round so he could see the weapon held in her hands. "I have this..." she said.  
The dragon gave a toothy smile "That looks lethal, Rynn. Lets find something to try it out on" he suggested whilst flying towards a rocky tunnel.  
"By the way, what on Drakan did you do back there in the mine?" Arokh asked sharply suddenly remembering the miniature earthquake and explosion Rynn had caused.  
"I destroyed a grimstone generator, we needed to do it to be able to bring down the forcefields" she shouted, the icy wind blowing on her face making it harder for the dragon to hear her.  
Arokh did not reply but shook his head slowly and smiled to himself.

The bonded pair followed the tunnel taking out a couple more blackwings as they went until they reached the bottom of a steep cliff reaching almost to the top of the mountain. Rynn looked up and saw nothing but ice covered rocks surrounded by cloud. She shivered with the cold hoping that they would find warmer lands soon; perhaps the weather would be much warmer in the Southeast she wondered.

"I remember an old temple at the top of this mountain ridge. I used to visit it from time to time when I needed to be closer to the gods" Arokh remarked as he began the climb to the top. Suddenly a shriek sounded from behind and Arokh was hit in the legs with a blast of poisonous acidic blackwing breath slowly etching away at his scales and skin. He roared in anger and turned round to face his adversary unleashing a steady stream of flame in into the creature's face burning its eyes. The now blind creature began breathing its acidic fumes wildly hoping to hit its foe but Arokh was too quick for it and sent it crashing to the valley floor, its wings aflame unable to keep it airborne.

Rynn barely had the chance to drink a health potion when a rock hit Arokh squarely in the chest knocking the breath out of him. He let out a stifled bellow and looked in the direction the rock came from. Up above was a giant hurling rocks and balls of ice in their direction. Rynn quickly downed a potion of life healing their wounds and Arokh flew sharply up into the air diving down onto the giant with a scream of fury, his claws outstretched. He sunk his claws into the creature's neck as easily as a knife through butter and slashed wildly withdrawing as blood gushed from the giant's wounds. He landed behind as the giant fell to the floor dead, the snow around it rapidly changing from bright white into a crimson red.

"A giant. It seems you were telling the truth after all" Arokh commented with a smile as he watched the blood trickle into a nearby dip in the snow forming a large puddle before disappearing into a rock fissure.  
"What!" Rynn exclaimed. "You think I'm a liar?" she said furiously, taken aback by the dragon's comment.  
Arokh gave a stern look at his bonded "No Rynn. I was only joking."  
"Oh" Rynn said, her voice now distinctly quieter. She did not apologise. "You have a strange sense of humour Arokh. Sometimes its difficult to tell whether you are being nasty and sarcastic or trying to be humorous" she continued.  
"You will know when I intend to be nasty" the dragon grumbled.  
"Oh yes. I certainly do. I won't forget what you said to me when we first met" Rynn answered, remembering her first encounter with the dragon a few hours ago.  
"Well, that's because I thought you were a pathetic little girl who wanted to find her brother and you took advantage of me. However, I was wrong, it turns out that this seems to be much more than a simple kidnapping. You are a capable fighter Rynn but sometimes you want to watch your mouth yourself; you show little respect for me" Arokh explained, trying to keep his temper.

Rynn was now slightly more irate. "What? You made me kneel before you and kiss your feet! Isn't that enough?" she snapped.  
Arokh shook his head. "I only asked you to kneel. Anyway, you only kissed my foot because you were terrified and you thought it would please me more." His head turned to look at her directly. "You were afraid I'd kill you and were begging for my help." He continued.  
"No, I wasn't Arokh. Look, I'm a little worried about my brother and I can be a bit offhand sometimes. Surely you understand that" she said angrily.  
Arokh did not bother to argue with her further but deep inside he knew the human was correct and understood her predicament. He thought it was best to leave it at that and quickly changed the subject. "Anyway, what about looking in there," he said nodding in the direction of the giant's cave.

Rynn jumped off Arokh's back and walked into the Giant's lair. Bones of unfortunate victims lay scattered on the floor. As Rynn was about to leave, she noticed the back wall had a hole in it blocked by ice.  
"Hey, Arokh. Come in here a minute" she shouted back at her companion who followed, his claws clicking on the solid ice. "See that?" Rynn asked pointing to the ice blocking the hole. Arokh did not need to ask again, he knew what his bonded was thinking. He exhaled a small jet of flame instantly melting the blockage. Rynn grinned at him and disappeared into the newly exposed cave only to be confronted by a large family of scavengers.

Rynn stepped back uneasily running back to the safety of her dragon. The scavengers followed but were unable to squeeze through the small opening.  
"Get out of the way!" Arokh shouted from behind. There was nowhere for Rynn to go; Arokh was blocking the exit so she ducked and rolled underneath him wedging herself in between his rear legs. Arokh poked his head through the hole as far as he dared and let loose a cloud of flame burning the majority of the scavengers. "There's only a couple left. You should be able to handle them... Where are you?" Arokh asked sharply.  
"I'm here" a voice came from underneath him. "Just don't sit down."  
"There you are!" Arokh exclaimed as Rynn rolled out from underneath him.  
"No problem" she said as she wandered into the cave, stepping over the corpses of the scavengers. The two remaining ones came leaping over and she sliced through them with the flamesword. The blade however broke, the corrosive scavenger blood finally taking its toll on the ancient blade. Rynn suddenly felt disappointed, she had lost one of her best weapons.

Ahead the ice had completely melted where two holes in the ground were slowly giving off steam. Rynn walked over to investigate but they simply turned out to be volcanic vents, the steam had a strong smell of sulphur and offered some warmth. She sat there for a few moments until the stench of the sulphur was too much to bear and continued deeper into the cave. It looked like this part was once an underground lake, now frozen solid. A few human skeletons were encased in the ice; adventurers or warriors who must have fallen into the water and were unable to climb out. Luckily, one of the skeletons just on the surface was accompanied by a backpack typical of what travellers carried. The old leather disintegrated in Rynn's hands as she picked it up but she was pleased to find it contained an invisibility potion. She picked it up and the scale mail the skeleton was wearing and jumped down to meet the waiting Arokh.

"So, where is this temple?" She asked the dragon whilst replacing her armour with the stronger scale mail, this time a better fit; the skeleton belonged to a female.  
"The temple of Ice was here, but it looks like its nothing more than a pile of stones now. However, there is a sacred blade of the Order nearby. Its booby trapped but you should be able to obtain it." Arokh mumbled.  
"What kind of sword is it?" Rynn asked inquisitively.  
"A sword of ice. Capable of freezing enemies solid" Arokh replied.  
"Sounds good. Assuming it still exists," she said bitterly. "_If the temple is gone, the sword may be too_" she thought.

Arokh walked out of the cave followed by Rynn. He pointed to the left where a small entrance in a block of compressed snow could be seen, big enough for her to crawl through. "There looks like there has been an avalanche at one point. The Sword of Ice is probably through there" he suggested.  
"Okay, Ill go and have a look seem as we are here" Rynn said after a slight pause. She walked over to the hole and after getting down on her hands and knees, crawled into a small room cut into the snow itself, empty bar one barrel containing a potion of life. Another exit lay ahead and looking out, Rynn was dismayed to see another giant sitting in front of what looked like some kind of shrine.  
"_Why does everything seem to be so difficult?_" she thought to herself as she crept from the entrance hoping not to be seen.

Rynn tried to walk as quietly as she could but the snow crunched noisily under her feet. The Giant stood up and Rynn froze but luckily it hadn't seen her; it scratched its backside and sat down. Again it stood up and began scratching more forcefully.  
"_It must have one itchy ass_," Rynn thought to herself. The entrance to the shrine wasn't that far away now.  
"To hell with this" Rynn said and ran as fast as she could into the entrance slipping on the icy surface a couple of times. The Giant could not follow her though due to large stone columns around the entrance but a roar from behind confirmed she had been seen as she walked down the short icy tunnel into a large dome shaped room. Arokh was correct; there, on a pedestal was a long blue coloured sword in pristine condition.

However, things proved to be not so simple, as she walked forward, huge rings of ice similar to the ring of fire the flamesword gave out emanated from the pedestal and spread across the room. The blasts continued every three seconds, not enough time to run in and grab the sword. Rynn did have her speed and agility to her advantage and she leapt over the icy wave taking some serious damage but surviving long enough to jump onto the pedestal. She drank a potion of life and grabbed the sword, stopping the icy assault below her feet.  
"That wasn't so hard," she said to herself as she ran back outside. She had forgotten about the giant.

With a roar, the huge beast made a swipe at her with its massive hands but she quickly ducked out of the way. The horrified Rynn quickly ran back to the safety of the shrine to ponder her situation. To her dismay, there were no arrows left but she had one fire crystal with two remaining charges. She crept as close as she could to the beast and let off the two charges incinerating the hairy legs making the giant even more angry. Rynn took her new-found blade into her hands hoping that it would give off the same devastating ring of ice the pedestal it was resting on gave off. She was bitterly disappointed.

Instead, the sword simply surrounded her in a bubble, which, if it touched anything, slowly froze the thing it was in contact with. As she suspected, it did minimal damage to the giant.  
"This thing is useless," she said to herself with disappointment. She hid behind the stones and began to stab at the giant's leg. Eventually, the sword began to show its usefulness; to her amazement, the giant froze solid! Grinning she pulled out the mace and hit the hideous beast shattering it into hundreds of tiny fragments.

"_Now to get back to Arokh_" she thought as she headed back the way she came. Another disappointment; the snow collapsed as she tried to make it back to the cave. Looking up, she could see another path and realising that it was the only way out of there began to find a way of getting up to it. She walked past where the giant was sitting and followed another small path leading between two towering mountains. The cold was now really beginning to take its toll, Rynn's hands and feet were numb and her exposed skin tingled with the cold. She shivered uncontrollably, hypothermia was beginning to set in and she had to get back to Arokh soon.

To her horror, two giants stood in the large open area in front of her. There was no way she could take on both of them especially in the state she was in. Rynn drank the invisibility potion she found earlier and ran quickly past them stopping briefly to take some health potions and another invisibility potion from their cave. She ran up the path, fortunately leading back towards Arokh as fast as she could. A roar and the sound of heavy footsteps sounded behind her as the invisibility potion wore off but it didn't matter; the end of the path was just ahead. With a final leap, she jumped down and rolled back into the snowdrift cave leading to Arokh just as the giant's fist came crashing down.

Rynn stopped inside the little room for a moment to catch her breath but the wall suddenly collapsed as the giant's fist came through. She ran out of the other entrance panicking and fell in the ice neatly landing on her hands and knees at Arokh's feet.  
The dragon's ruby red eyes looked down on her with surprise. "Hmm, it seems you enjoy kissing my feet after all" the dragon said as Rynn slipped again falling on her face, her lips briefly making contact with his foot. She grunted to herself at her misfortune and slid backwards sitting down facing him. She muttered something under her breath and picked up the Ice Blade. "I see you got it then" he said when he saw the sword in her hands; it was something he had not seen for a long time.  
Rynn looked up into the dragon's eyes and frowned. "Just about. There was three giants back there. I managed to avoid two of them but I managed to kill one" she said wearily, still panting.  
"Arokh, I think I have a mild case of hypothermia. We should find warmth soon or Ill freeze to death" she continued wrapping her hands round his front leg to warm them.

"Sounds a good idea, we might come across a Wartock camp soon, there seems to be a lot of them around. We should find a fire and some food for both of us. Health potions will cure frostbite" the dragon agreed holding out one of his front legs to help Rynn to stand. "Here let me help you," he said. Rynn gratefully accepted and held Arokh's foot in her hand as he pulled her up.  
"Thanks" she mumbled as she climbed onto his back.

Rynn was still shivering horribly; even Arokh's scales were cold to the touch but slightly lifting one on his back and placing her hand underneath, warmth could be felt. Arokh flew back towards the barrier, diving down the steep cliff with alarming speed, the cold wind taking Rynn's breath away.  
"Watch out for the Giant, Arokh" Rynn warned as they flew through the barrier. He grunted in reply and began to hurl fireballs in the giant's direction, strafing to one side to avoid the exploding barrels. The Giant was no match for the mighty dragon however and it fell over with a groan, its hairy body aflame.

"You make it so easy" Rynn commented.  
Arokh smiled slightly and hovered in the air surveying the landscape ahead. A plume of smoke rose up from a campfire in the middle of a clearing surrounded by wartocks and Grull.  
"Fancy some lunch?" the dragon asked with a smile.  
"Definitely" Rynn replied as Arokh shot more flame at the wartocks and Grull below. Arokh flew out of the cover of the trees as another red dragon came towards them, smaller than Arokh and it had large bat like ears instead of horns. Its body was covered in smooth red skin and a black mane went down its back to the base of its tail.  
"A bat dragon!" Rynn exclaimed. "We don't often see these. Maybe its friendly?" she continued seeing that the dragon did not attack.

The dragon came closer; its wicked yellow eyes observed Arokh with suspicion. "I don't think its friendly. They are very territorial like blackwings, or crow dragons as you call them" Arokh whispered.  
Arokh was correct; the primitive dragon, no more intelligent than a blackwing decided that this larger dragon was not one of its kind; an outsider. With a scream, it backed off slightly and began to shoot shards of ice at Arokh hitting him in his stomach.  
He blinked and grunted in pain and returned fire, the dragon was just as easily dealt with as a blackwing but its attack was more powerful.

"Help me out here!" he snarled under his breath evading another icy projectile. "I know" Rynn coughed and drank another healing potion giving Arokh more strength to carry on. He lunged at the dragon and breathed a cloud of flame instead of his usual fireballs right into its back setting its mane alight. The dragon screamed in pain and began to retreat but after a short while, it plunged to the ground, its severe skin burns causing its painful demise.  
"That was close," Arokh said as he landed by the campfire. "You collect anything the wartocks dropped whilst I smash these crates for the fire. Its starting to die down" he continued, dipping to let Rynn off.  
Rynn nodded and collected three health potions plus a medium sized war axe and returned to the campfire where Arokh was waiting. He had placed the wood from the crates on the fire and was now devouring an animal carcass that the wartocks were cooking.

"Leave some for me" Rynn objected not wanting the great red beast to eat everything like he did before. Arokh grunted and tore off a chunk of meat in his mouth. "Here" he mumbled. Rynn outstretched her hands and Arokh dropped the saliva covered meat onto her hands.  
"Ugh" Rynn exclaimed with disgust. "I don't want it after it's been in your mouth!"  
Arokh blinked and swallowed. "It's only a bit of saliva. It won't poison you. Get it eaten, its the only food you may find for a while."  
Rynn wiped off the meat the best she could and reluctantly ate it. It tasted foul, it wasn't exactly cooked thoroughly and the dragon spittle gave it a slightly salty taste.

"Well, that was, horrible" she said sitting down by the fire, Arokh joining her at her side. He sat down and let out a long, loud groan of content.  
There was an awful silence and Rynn felt slightly uneasy, unsure of what to say to the dragon; the only conversation they had had up to now was to do with fighting and wartocks.

Finally Rynn asked "so, what was Heron and the Order like?"

Arokh moved about slightly and turned his head to face his companion.  
"I don't like to talk about my past but Heron was a great warrior and a true friend. We served in the Order for over 200 years, 208 years to be more precise before he was... killed." he answered, his voice changing to a deeper note as he said the last few words.  
"That's a long time, didn't you ever get bored or get tired of each other's company?" she asked with disbelief.  
Arokh stretched his rear legs out and looked at her, his eyes blinking a couple of times. "Sure, we had our bad moments but my service in the Order was the best moments of my life. Heron and I met when I was very young; he was actually older than I by a few years. We became friends after I saved his life and we eventually joined the order and bonded. We were posted to various places around the world and saw and met fascinating places and races. Of course, a large part of my service was spent here, in my homeland."

The dragon paused and continued "The early years of the Order were hard but we managed to gain control of the majority of the world bringing peace and ending petty wars. This lasted for a couple of hundred years then Navaros was born... it all went downhill from there as you know" he said sadly.  
Rynn nodded taking this in. "Yes, I know, I read the legends but I didn't really take much notice. There is one thing I wanted to know though; how come you didn't go into eternal sleep upon Heron's death?"

The dragon looked down at the ground and then back up. "A good question. Its because Heron died within the rift whilst I was back in this world. The bond was broken and his death had no effect. A few months after it was all over, I and the other remaining dragons followed the Dragon Mother into the sleep of ages. Now, if you please, I don't want to talk of it any more. It saddens me."  
Rynn understood the dragon's haunted past and didn't mention Heron any more.

"Maybe we could visit Drakan City on our travels, you can show me the wonders of the world" she added trying to carry on the conversation but steering it away from Heron.  
Arokh emitted a low growl within his throat. "Drakan City does not exist as I know it, if it exists at all. All of the Order's cities were levelled in the Dark Wars along with most of the places and people I knew. The city may have been rebuilt but your guess is as good as mine as to whether it's there or not." He explained, clearly irritated by Rynn's questions.

There was another long silence.  
"So, what's your story? You are obviously not just a farm girl" he asked Rynn suddenly.  
She cleared her throat and answered the dragon's question. "My life is nowhere as interesting as yours but I was one of the village guards. I trained as a warrior after the death of my parents in a Wartock raid. That's it I suppose, I never travelled far from my home."  
Another long silence, which Arokh broke first. "I see. Make no mistake, your life will become more interesting from now on once this is over." He paused and took a breath. "I hope you know that you can't just discard me like a used tissue once you find your brother."  
"I know, Arokh. You are part of my family now, perhaps more than family" she assured him. "The three of us will be together."  
Arokh looked deeper into the flickering flames of the fire and stretched a wing over Rynn to shield her from the snow that had started to fall.

"I hear something" Rynn said, and jumped up. She drew her blade, and looked around carefully. She saw nothing far and near, but something was moving around.  
"Arokh, would you be so kind and-" she said, when she noticed Arokh was too still. Poking him she realised the dragon was asleep. "Nice" she thought "he falls asleep when I'd need him. A great help."  
She quickly hid behind a crate, just in time. A few wartocks came, and suddenly halted when spotted the sleeping Arokh. They had no idea how the red dragon came here, and what it was doing, and this made them be confused. A few minutes later they decided to get the rid of the problem though, and ran at Arokh shouting a loud battle cry.  
The loud voices awoke the dragon, however. Arokh took a sleepy look at them, and breathed a large cloud of fire.  
Rynn was just jumping at the first Wartock when the fire arrived. She could barely jump back from the lethal firestorm. The wartocks could not do anything but become ash in seconds.  
"Now look what you did! You burnt my hair!" Rynn shouted.  
"And saved you" the dragon smiled.  
"SAVED ME!" Rynn was becoming a bit angry "YOU WERE ASLEEP AND I WAS SAVING YOU!"  
"You saving me?" Arokh grinned "Interesting idea."  
Rynn murmured something, and jumped back onto Arokh.  
"Let's get moving... I'm cold" she said.  
"I can feel so" the dragon nodded "Hold on. Hopefully it won't take long now."

"Sorry about that Rynn, I'm not fully recovered from my stony sleep." Arokh mumbled back to Rynn as they flew further down the canyon.

"Okay, but try not to fall asleep... oh. Not again!" Rynn said with dismay as another grimstone forcefield blocked their path.  
"Seems like you will have to go on alone again" Arokh answered under his breath as he despatched another dragon coming towards them.  
"Yeah, I want to be out of this place as quickly as possible before I freeze again" Rynn shivered.  
Arokh peered through the grimstone forcefield, the gateway to the Southeastern continent could just be seen through the green semi transparent membrane. "Its not far now" he said hoping to boost her confidence.

A Wartock jeered at them from a cave halfway up the rock face on their left. Arokh angrily sent several balls of flame into the opening roasting it alive in seconds. "No-one laughs at me" he scoffed.  
"Wait a minute Arokh before you fly away. There is a lever there, I don't suppose you can hover near enough for me to pull it could you?" she asked thinking that the lever might just be near enough without finding another way into the cave.  
"Don't be stupid. My wings will hit the rocks" the dragon snorted scornfully. He couldn't believe Rynn was missing something blatantly obvious.  
Noticing something, he spoke before Rynn could answer him back. "There is a path leading up to a small opening up there. Perhaps that may lead to the cave."

Rynn nodded in agreement. "There's only one way of finding out. Land over there and ill take a look."

Arokh landed outside the opening and Rynn jumped off and ran up seeing that it led to a ridge cut into the mountain. A large boom sounded behind her and the snow lit up with vivid yellow for a second or two. She turned round startled to see Arokh killing a Grull which had crept up behind unnoticed. "Nice one, Arokh" she congratulated and began to walk down the path.  
BOOM! An exploding barrel suddenly hit the rocks in front of her. Another giant! Rynn turned and saw one stood on a ledge across a small canyon below but she couldn't reach it. Out of arrows, she readied decided to run, readying her Ice Sword and ran straight into two waiting Wartocks within the cave.

Rynn cried out as the Wartock's axe buried itself into her side almost knocking her to the floor. She quickly got hold of the situation and hit the creature hard with the sword, simultaneously rubbing her hand over the embedded crystal releasing the ice bubble surrounding her. The two Wartocks continued to attack and Rynn dodged them with her unsurpassed agility eventually noticing their attacks slowing as if they were running out of stamina. There was a cracking sound and both of them froze solid, Rynn shattering them both with one final blow.

"That was close" she muttered heading towards the lift just in front of her. Another barrel hit the rocks just outside the entrance signalling the Giant's continued attempts at removing her from existence. Rynn ran onto the lift, descending into another cave below with a creak of the lift mechanism. Stepping off the wooden platform into the dark cave, she was pleased to find she was the only one in there. With a sigh of relief, she ran up to the lever and pulled it dissolving the green barrier allowing them to continue to the gateway. She took the two health potions the dead Wartock was hoarding and returned to Arokh.

"I did it" she said running up to the great red dragon, her feet crunching on the thin ice covered snow.  
"Nice work Rynn, shall we go now or do you want to explore a little more?" Arokh congratulated, his deep voice echoing in the rocky grotto.  
"There's a small cavern at the other side of the hole but I don't think it's worth the risk of going down there. There's at least one giant and a few wartocks" Rynn answered tidying her hair again the best she could. "Lets get going."

The pair flew through the now open gate, Wartocks fleeing below them at the sight of the dragon. Something ahead made Arokh stop and slowly fly over towards the gateway; there, hovering in front of the gateway was a dragon who he thought was long dead.  
"Could it be, Arokh?" the dragon asked, its body covered in thick grey and white fur.  
Arokh blinked and stuttered for a moment "I..I.. Uh. Yes. Werokh, I thought you were dead! Who awakened you?" he asked overjoyed that his life long friend had seemingly come back from the dead. His jaws opened into wide smile revealing his razor sharp teeth.

Werokh shook his head "Who awakened me does not matter Arokh, but let me say I did not bother to bond. I do not wish to be limited by the weaknesses of Humans." The dragon snarled, obviously not pleased to see his friend at all.  
Arokh's smile soon faded. "What? But... I thought I was the only dragon of the Order" the confused dragon stuttered again.  
"Oh but you are. You see I serve a new master, one that disagrees with the ways of the Order. Humans are nothing more than insects and soon they will no longer be the dominant species of this pathetic planet." His eyes moved over to Rynn who thought, _"You are wrong about that. Wartocks are the main species of this world."_  
"Speaking of which. Interesting choice Arokh, from Heron to a peasant" he laughed scornfully.

Arokh looked bewildered for a few moments and then he began to fill with rage. "How dare you! How dare you speak of my rider like that! She is quite surprising actually and a worthy rider" he bellowed with fury, his temper now at a peak.  
There was a short silence as the two angry dragons stared at each other. Arokh was the first one to break the silence. "I pity you Werokh," he said shaking his head half with sadness, half with anger.  
"No, its you that should be pitied. Just look at you. You're pathetic." Werokh snorted and an evil smile crossed his face. He gazed at his former friend scornfully and replied "you and the ways of the Order. You are nothing but a nuisance, now its time for you to go to sleep. Forever" He laughed and quickly flew up into the air raining ice shards onto the still standing Arokh.

Rynn knew what was happening and drank a health potion as Arokh lifted into the air returning fire at Werokh, hitting him in the chest. "Wait! Don't attack," he yelled but it was no good. Werokh let loose another ice blast, neatly evading Arokh's flames. "Damn, he's fast" Arokh muttered under his breath taking another hit to his wing.  
"Rynn, Ill try and get behind him, help me out if you can; it will be a tough fight" he shouted back at his rider just as another blast went by.

Rynn didn't answer but she heard him and began to search for a suitable weapon. Arokh began to circle his foe avoiding the icy projectiles the best he could returning fire whenever the opportunity presented itself.  
Rynn had no arrows left and was unable to help but as Werokh's head came close, she suddenly had a idea; she pulled one of her swords from her back and hurled it at the dragon but missed as he swiftly dodged out of the way.  
"Damn, I missed" she mumbled. Arokh snarled in pain and let loose a blast of poison hoping to blur his adversary's vision so he could take advantage.

"It seems you have no-one to heal you" Arokh laughed as he again got close, hitting Werokh in the back, his fur in flames. Arokh hit again, this time the skin on Werokh's back clearly visible beneath the singed fur. Summoning all of his strength, Arokh flew at the fleeing dragon sinking his claws into his back. "You should have grown scales my friend" he said as Werokh shrieked in pain, blood running freely down his body.  
He whipped round and shot one last blast of ice into Arokh's face and fell to the ground but still alive... barely. Rynn healed and Arokh set down beside the fallen dragon, edging closer so he was stood over him.

"Why?" Arokh roared.  
Werokh gave a faint smile. "You are no longer my friend, you see, I turned traitor against the Order like I said. I have a new master now."  
"Who?" Arokh demanded. "Tell me!" he snapped furiously.  
Werokh stayed silent. Arokh stared at his former friend with disbelief and turned to Rynn watching behind.  
"Give me a potion of life" he whispered. Rynn nodded and threw one at the dragon who caught it with an outstretched foreclaw.  
"Listen Werokh. I don't really want to kill you but you leave me little choice; join the Order and I will save your life." Arokh rumbled as he showed him the potion he held.  
"Go to hell" Werokh grunted as he lashed out with his talons hitting Arokh in the stomach.  
"You first" Arokh snarled in anger throwing the potion away and bending down to break the dragon's neck. He paused for a moment, his jaws hovering over his former friend's neck, then with a growl of anger he bit deep and twisted violently. A loud crack followed as Werokh's body went limp.

Werokh was an Elder Breed dragon, like his friend and with a heavy rumbling; a rune containing his powers emerged from the canyon floor, lightning jumping from it like snakes touching the rocks around. Arokh gave an angry snarl and flew up to absorb it. A few minutes later it was all over, he now had the temporary power of ice.

Arokh landed next to Rynn, his eyes burning with fury; Rynn saw his anger and didn't even say anything. She tried to mount him but he pushed her away angrily.  
"How could he? Of all the things we have been through! How dare he betray me?" he raged. "Everything I come across that seems like a flicker of hope is dashed in bitter disappointment."  
Rynn put a hand on his side to try and comfort him. "Leave me alone!" he snapped. "I'm going to take a dump!"

With that, Arokh stormed off and shortly returned his eyes still glowing with anger. A Wartock bravely crept up hoping to take advantage of the situation. Arokh caught him in the corner of his eye and grabbed him, knocking the war axe from his hands with superior strength.  
"You!" he snarled, shaking him. "Tell me who your master is!"  
The Wartock did not reply but gave a faint evil smile. He wasn't going to divulge any information no matter what happened to him and he wasn't really sure who his master was anyway. His immediate superior was his group commander, another Wartock like him.  
Arokh roared with fury at the Wartock's display of arrogance and dragged the unfortunate creature over to where the large pile of dragon dung lay, still steaming on the ground. He pushed the Wartock's face close to the foul smelling pile and asked again. "Tell me or I will make this very unpleasant for you."  
"Please, I don't know" the Wartock pleaded half sobbing with fear, he genuinely couldn't answer the dragon's question.  
Arokh sighed and submerged the Wartock's face into the dung for a few seconds and pulled it back out, the Wartock beginning to retch horribly, trying to wipe his face with his one free hand.

"Your last chance to tell me or Ill suffocate you to death. In this" Arokh warned, again pushing the Wartock closer to the dung pile. No reply came as the Wartock was too busy being sick so he again submerged the creature's face but this time held it until the Wartock stopped struggling. Arokh gave a deafening roar and fixed Rynn with glowing red eyes.  
"Aww, that was sick Arokh, what did you do that for? Rynn asked with disgust.  
"Shut up! Leave me alone for five minutes" he snapped at her.  
"With all due respect Arokh, shouldn't we be going?" she asked faintly ducking in case the dragon lashed out at her in fury.  
He growled and eventually said "You and your brother. I suppose you are right, we must find this 'master' behind all of this. Come on."  
Arokh let her onto his back and was airborne before she could get seated properly. He was furious at his friend turning traitor and attempting to kill him and she decided not to speak any more unless spoken to.

The bonded pair took one last look around the clearing and flew through the gateway into the somewhat warmer tropical lands.

Chapter Six: The Eastern Archipelago 

Rynn gasped at the beautiful landscape that was revealed ahead, never had she seen lands like these. Crystal clear cobalt waters lapped at golden sandy beaches surrounding the small islands and the setting evening sun cast a warm orange light across the landscape. Palm trees dotted with coconuts grew up from the grass covered islands and odd ruins lay scattered on the ground, once proud buildings destroyed long ago by war or fallen into ruin through centuries of neglect.

"That's better. Warmth." Arokh said quietly, landing besides a waterfall which fell from the vast inland lake above them. The stream, which it fed flowed for a few tens of meters then disappeared abruptly where it sank into the ground filling the underground caverns and rivers beneath them. The lake that made up the Archipelago was above sea level and the rivers in the surrounding lands mostly flowed from the lake to the sea many miles away.  
"Evening already. Does time pass quickly whilst we went through the gate?" Rynn asked.  
The irritated dragon snorted "You ask stupid questions sometimes. We have just travelled halfway around the world in an instant. Did you think that it would be midday in all parts of the world at the same time?"  
Rynn realised her stupidity "I never thought of it," she said blushing with embarrassment.

Arokh flew up to a large tower like structure that grew like a claw out of the ground and landed on a grassy patch in front of what looked like a window of some sort. As he was about to speak, he was startled by two winged humanoids descending from the 'window' and landing in front of them.

Arokh looked at them with surprise and Rynn jumped off and readied her sword should the strange winged half humans attack.  
"My, My what brings you to our wonderful land?" one of them asked in a soft friendly voice. The other stepped a few steps closer and said "My, what a handsome dragon… and the woman is so.. Lovely"  
Rynn and Arokh looked at each other briefly, Rynn immediately putting her sword away, for once they had met strangers who didn't want to kill her, strange that they may be.

"Ahem, thanks" she said in bewilderment scratching the side of her head. " I'm looking for my brother. A small child who may have been brought through the gateway over there" she continued pointing to where she and Arokh had just come from.  
The creature's expression changed as if she recognised something. "It seems you are in luck. We can help you; you see, there is a wizard to the North." It said. "He is evil" the other added. The first one interrupted her companion. "He has the rift crystal and plans to use it for his wicked tricks. He has the boy you are looking for."  
Rynn's face lit up with joy; her journey seemingly was almost at an end. She faced Arokh to say something about Delon but he roughly pushed her aside and craned his neck closer to the winged creatures.  
"The rift crystal?" he boomed.  
The creatures backed away in fear and one replied "Yes, surely you have heard of the legends."  
"Of course. Every dragon has." He said thoughtfully. "We must stop this Wizard before we do anything."

The two creatures bowed and began to fly away. "Good luck" they shouted from above then they were gone.  
"What were those things?" Rynn asked her scaly companion picking herself up off the ground and rubbing her arm where he had hit her.  
Arokh, still highly irritated gave a scowl and answered her question. "Succubi. Such strange creatures." he said flatly.  
"Well, I don't trust them, they seemed a little too friendly if you know what I mean" Rynn suggested. "What is this rift crystal thing anyway?"  
Arokh gave a long sigh. "The rift crystal was part of Heron's sword, the Runeblade. It was separated into two halves when Navaros was banished to the rift, the blade itself and the crystal. No-one knows what happened to the blade but Rimril; the fourth archmage of the Order took the crystal to his fortress. It now seems to be in the wrong hands."  
"You know a lot of history. I'm impressed" Rynn said hopping onto his back.  
"Yeah. Well, I've lived a lot of history" the dragon remarked as he flew into the air.

Elsewhere...  
Queen Shilla sat on her throne; her red bat like wings folded at the sides of her fat hideous body. She was very different to the rest of the Succubi – they were beautiful but the queen simply hideously ugly.

The two Succubi who spoke to Rynn and Arokh descended and respectfully bowed before their queen.  
"Is everything going to plan?" Shilla asked in her sharp piercing voice which was enough to make anyone cringe; the sound of her voice was akin to someone scraping their fingernails down a blackboard.  
"Yes, my Queen. The dragon and his little bitch are heading for Rimril's tower, as we wanted them to. Soon the rift crystal will be in our hands."  
Shilla scowled at her messengers hoping they were correct. "It had better be or our lord will be most displeased. See that the girl manages to gain access to the tower and then make sure the dragon is no longer a problem. Our lord has a use for him so make sure no harm comes to him or his woman. They must not suspect foul play or our plan may be rumbled."  
"Yes, my queen" they simultaneously said and flew away.

Meanwhile, Arokh and Rynn were making their way across the islands towards Rimril's tower fending off more bat dragons as they went. Nothing much was of interest on the ground, an area to be explored if and when they had more time. Rynn's primary concern now was her brother and a few Wartocks and Grull heaving crates of raw unprocessed Grimstone about were hardly a concern for her.

"Our wizard I presume" Arokh proclaimed seeing a hooded figure stood outside a stone tower carved into the northernmost point mountain side; a faint memory suggested he visited the tower many centuries ago but he wasn't sure. Rynn didn't reply and Arokh descended down to land in front of the hooded man who seemingly had no face. All that could be seen were two glowing red eyes within his cowl.

"Arokh. It is you!" The man said, remembering the long lost dragon. Arokh in response blinked and frowned.  
"Forgive me for being rude, but do I know you?" He asked craning his neck closer. "I don't think I have had the pleasure" he continued, his voice now distinctly softer and more polite.  
"I am what was once known as Rimril. Surely you remember me" the hooded figure introduced gesturing briefly with one arm at the tower behind him.  
"Yes of course" Arokh remarked softly. "But it cannot be, even a wizard will be long dead by now. It's been nearly six centuries." He had doubts in his mind and was ready to attack should the being prove to be hostile.  
"The person you know is dead, Arokh. I have come back in spirit form to look over the rift crystal forever, until the sun goes dark if need be" Rimril explained seeing that the dragon seemed restless and uneasy.  
"My Bro…" Rynn interrupted before Arokh could speak again. He turned his head round to look at her upon his back and scowled barring his teeth as a way of showing that he wanted her to be quiet. Undeterred by Arokh's attitude; she continued raising her voice wanting to get her questions answered whilst she had the chance. "We met some Succubi, they said you were evil and were holding my brother captive."

Rimril laughed "Don't believe them Rynn. They want the rift crystal but they cannot get it themselves. Agents of the Dark Union cannot enter the tower; they want you to get it and then they will take it from you."

Arokh nodded to show that he agreed with Rimril but Rynn wasn't interested in what they were talking about. She quickly dismounted and walked closer to the hooded figure.  
"How do you know my name?" she demanded.  
Rimril continued, his powers probing her mind. "I know a lot of things and why you are here. You seek your brother; he is not here. The Succubi have taken him hostage along with other young boys; god only knows what for. Even I cannot tell."  
"Arokh, we have to go back," she cried tapping him on his neck. Arokh's great head turned round again to fix her with a scornful gaze. The look in his eyes was enough to say that he was sick of her talking about Delon.

"No!" he snarled. "It seems the Dark Union has been reborn, led by an unknown mage or necromancer. This is more important now. If we go back for your brother, we will surely be outnumbered and killed. But if we were to get the rift crystal... Yes. Rynn, you must get the crystal, its the only way" he said thoughtfully.  
"But what about the Succubi?" she asked.  
"You are a good fighter, Rynn. Use your imagination and see that they don't get it" the dragon snorted.  
"Tell me Rimril. How do we get the crystal?" he asked in a softer, kinder voice.  
Rimril coughed and began to explain. "First Rynn must pass the test of the tower, a series of tests that test mental and physical abilities. Once she has passed, she will be able to gain access to the crystal but will not be able to pick it up until she has survived the elemental tests; fire, earth, air and lightning. You will have to get the elemental amulet to unlock the inner tower gates. You will need the bellhammer of Alwarren to gain access to the elemental tests."

"Great. More relic hunting" Rynn said bitterly.  
"Where are these two items?" Arokh asked sharply.  
"The bellhammer can be found in the town square of Alwarren, now sunk into the ground. As for the Amulet, some Goblins stole it and took it to their lair to the east." He explained.  
"Okay, Easy enough. Rynn, lets get going" Arokh demanded, in a tone of voice that would brook no argument.  
Rimril spoke once more before they left. "Return here when you have both items NOT before." There was a blinding flash of light and Rimril disappeared.

Rynn walked round the great red beast to stand before him so it was easier for them to talk.  
"Are you sure we should waste time?" she asked. Arokh growled furiously in response. "We are not wasting time. Trust me, do you want to die a hideous death at the hands of the Succubi because of your impatience? If the rift crystal falls into the wrong hands, your brother and the rest of humanity will be in even more danger."  
"Wouldn't it be safer where it is?" She suggested.  
"No. How many more times. We could use it to our advantage, now please be quiet!" Arokh snarled as his temper begun to rise. "Really Rynn, if we were not bonded, I'd love to give you a damn good beating right here and now. I don't want to hear a word from you unless I speak to you first."

"Why are you so cruel?" she cried putting her hands over her face fighting back the tears. Arokh looked back at her and frowned but did not say anything. He knew that moment he should apologise but remained silent. He eventually let out an exasperated sigh and nudged her gently with the side of his head swallowing in shame at his outburst but yet still could not bring himself to apologise.

Realising that the dragon had far more knowledge of the world and intelligence than she had, Rynn unexpectedly apologised first. "I'm sorry Arokh" she said quietly "Please don't be angry with me, as you can tell, I'm worried about my brother."  
Arokh sighed again understanding his companion's worry and turned his head to look at her.  
"Nasty and short tempered I may be but the recent events have taken their toll and your impatience is annoying. Remember, I'm a dragon and I do have a fearsome nature." He shuffled about, absently pressing a small stone into the mud and smiled. "I think we can be friends Rynn, but you can be awkward sometimes. I cannot apologise enough for my attitude in the last hour, it was uncalled for but I guess you can see my predicament. I won't be cruel towards you like I was earlier; I promise. Okay? No hard feelings?"

Rynn nodded and hugged his neck for a few moments pressing her face up against his scales, their touch offering some comfort. "Yeah. I know you can be quite thoughtful and kind when you want to be." She paused to take a breath "I must be a real pain in the ass. Its okay, I understand." She said stepping back a little, realising how handsome the dragon looked in the evening sun. He wasn't _that_ bad; arrogant and bad tempered but deep down she liked him. She looked into his eyes and leant forward to kiss his neck and then climbed onto his back. Arokh's muscles tensed as a sudden feeling of friendship between him and his bonded seemingly came over him. "Ill never hurt you" he whispered, again apologising, wanting the recent bad feeling to be out of his mind.  
Rynn wiped away a tear and mounted him. "Lets try the Goblin Lair first, we will explore the islands as we pass over them" she continued as Arokh took off and began to head east.

Arokh roared in pain as an arrow tore through his right wing punching a hole through the leathery membrane. Another quickly followed and hit him just below the stomach, the sharp arrowhead piercing where his scales were the thinnest.  
"Argh, right in the crotch!" he yelled looking down and quickly ducking behind a rock to avoid another oncoming onslaught.  
"Goblins" he hissed in pain.  
"Where?" Rynn said, "I couldn't see anything."  
"They are well disguised against the grass, its difficult to make them out from the air. They carry dart or arrow guns typically tipped with poison or flames" the dragon noted strafing to one side so that the goblin came into view. He hurled a couple of fireballs turning it into ash in seconds.  
"They are easily dealt with but in numbers they can be dangerous" he commented looking around and landing on the soft grass intermingled with the golden sand.  
"Here, pull this arrow out of me" He groaned lying down and rolling over onto his side, his wing outstretched on the sand. Rynn squatted down and crawled under one of his rear legs so she could sit between them; she could see the arrow firmly embedded in him.

"That looks painful, I'm sure that hurts you more than it hurts me" she laughed, trying to add a little humour to the situation.  
"I don't think its funny" Arokh growled.  
"I can't see it, move your leg a bit. Oh, its broken off!" she exclaimed as she pulled out the arrow noticing the missing head.  
"Well, its in there, I can feel it, you will have to reach into the wound and pull it out. The arrowhead must have come off inside me" Arokh groaned again.

"I hope you don't want me to suck the poison out," Rynn said with a smile, again trying to lighten the atmosphere. She knew full well that the healing potions would cure any poisoning that the arrow may have been laden with.  
"Hmm, I think you had better in case it was poisoned. In fact I might even enjoy it." The dragon laughed slightly understanding Rynn's humour. "No. Don't worry, I don't think its poisoned" he laughed again, his attitude towards her now much more pleasant knowing that his life depended on her succeeding in removing the offending object.

Arokh winced as Rynn poked her fingers in, and groped about, she could feel nothing but flesh. Suddenly something metal touched her fingers. She pulled on the short shaft still stuck to the arrowhead as hard as she could so it wouldn't hurt as much and threw it onto the floor. She reached into her backpack and drank a potion of life, Arokh's wound healing before her very eyes.  
"Thanks" Arokh mumbled. "I appreciate it, you make a good medic."  
"Not a problem" Rynn answered holding on to his leg to help her stand. She walked over to the water's edge to wash his blood from her arm.  
"Ill see if there are any more goblins around" Rynn suggested as Arokh rolled over and stood up "Be careful" he said gently.

Rynn walked around the sandy beach and under rocky overhangs looking to see if the goblin had any companions. She found a couple of cases containing a speed bow and some flaming arrows, a couple more health vials were found in nearby barrels.  
She swivelled round on the heel of her foot upon hearing footsteps behind her. There, a goblin came leaping up to attack, its green frog like skin gleaming in the still strong evening sun. It held a dart gun in both hands and gave a strange crying noise as it ran up to her. She could see a bayonet attached to the end of its gun.

"Oh no you don't!" she said swinging for the creature with the mace tearing off its left arm. It shrieked and dropped its gun running away with blood gushing from the stump. Rynn did not bother to give chase and returned to Arokh.

"Arokh, look out!" she shouted as a bat dragon came up from behind but it started to attack her, not Arokh!  
"Arokh help me," she shouted as she ran for cover avoiding the icy projectiles from the bat and dragon crossbreed.  
"On my way" he assured leaping into the air killing the unsuspecting creature from behind hovering in the air for a few seconds to see if there were any more. He landed beside Rynn who was leaning against a rock to catch her breath. She was a little hurt but didn't bother to heal as she wanted to conserve her dwindling supply of potions.  
"Ready?" Arokh said.  
"As always" she replied climbing onto his back, the dragon once again heading into the air.

Eventually as they travelled east across the bay, a small cave opening could just be made out under a overhang, slightly obscured by trailing weeds that had grown above and trailed down to the floor covering the entrance. A large stone patio was outside the entrance and damaged stone columns rose up from the patio; obviously a building or temple once stood there further evidence given by the stone blocks strewn around the surrounding area.

As Rynn guessed, the entire place was crawling with goblins and a few bat dragons circled the area. Arokh landed on a clifftop out of sight and Rynn jumped off to stand by his side.  
"That must be the lair" Rynn suggested holding a hand to her forehead shielding her eyes from the sun.  
"It would seem so, this is as far east we can go, there are nothing but mountains behind. Beyond them is where Drakan city once stood" the dragon remarked remembering a previous journey long ago.

"It seems strange why we are being attacked. Surely if the Succubi wanted me to get the rift crystal, they wouldn't want us to be harmed" Rynn commented remembering the attack on them a few minutes ago.  
Arokh nodded "I would have thought so too, but perhaps the Succubi haven't told the Goblins yet; the Succubi's plan must have been thought of in an instant. We were met by them shortly after we came to these lands." Arokh answered in a softer, more gentle voice.  
Rynn cleared her throat. "Unless somebody told them we were coming. Did you see anyone or anything manage to get through the gateway whilst you were, ahem, punishing that Wartock? You know after you killed Werokh?" Rynn questioned again.

Arokh scratched the underside of his jaw with one of his front feet and groaned. "I didn't notice, I was too angry. It is possible; they must have thought up the plan there and then but they didn't take into account Rimril's powers."  
There was a short silence and eventually Arokh said "Come, Rynn. It would be of benefit to obtain the Amulet and the Bellhammer before nightfall"

They reached the lair a short while later, Arokh dealing with a couple of aerial threats with practised ease; the bat dragons were almost no challenge to him now that he had the same devastating breath they had. Arokh dodged another arrow and quickly dove down to the ground breathing a cloud of flame as he did so burning several goblins, Rynn hopping off to kill one coming from the side.

"Rynn, make a run for the entrance, Ill deal with the goblins from the air. If I get into trouble, you know what to do" he mumbled talking fast as time was of the essence.  
"What? I didn't hear the last part" Rynn shouted as Arokh unleashed another cloud of flame, his tail simultaneously swaying wildly from side to side hitting some goblins coming up from behind and smashing them into the rocks.  
"I said, Ill deal with these outside, you go on into the lair. Heal me if I get into trouble" Arokh said this time distinctly louder.  
"How will I know you are in trouble...?" Rynn asked but Arokh was already airborne hurling balls of flame at the unfortunate victims below, their cries of pain heard over the boom of Arokh's attacks.

Rynn soon found out as a sudden pain went through her; Arokh had been hit but the arrow simply bounced off his scales, however the flaming arrowhead causing some injury. She healed and disappeared into the goblin's lair.  
"_That dragon had better be careful, these potions do not grow on trees_" she thought to herself.

"It smells like something died in here" she remarked as she entered the cooler interior of the natural cave lit only by torches set into the walls at various intervals. She could hear Wartocks and Grull nearby but couldn't see them. Rynn quickly examined her stash of weapons and potions; she had a feeling it would not be easy. Rynn found that she had two invisibility potions and two invulnerability potions, one health potion and one potion of life. As for weapons, she had the sword of ice, the mace of the hand, a speed bow loaded with flaming arrows and a battle axe, all in reasonable condition.

"I don't need this" She said to herself in the semi-darkness. "I'm tired and I need a bath. I just wish this was all a dream."  
She gave a sigh, feeling that she should be more careful due to the lack of health potions and the help of her dragon companion and began to climb down the ladder leading into the lair.

As Rynn descended into the darkness, a searing pain went through her legs and something hot hit the side of her face burning through the skin in seconds. Rynn quickly wiped the molten substance away with one hand holding on to the ladder with the other. A couple of Goblin archers were sniping at her from alcoves at opposite sides of the cavern the ladder led into.  
"Goddam it!" she cursed as an ice arrow embedded itself into her arm freezing the surface skin making her let go falling to the floor and twisting her ankle. The four snipers were continuing to fire, she was a sitting duck.

"I have to get out of here now!" she said pulling herself up. She ignored the pain and tried to run across the stone bridge leading to an entrance to a tunnel a good twenty feet ahead.  
"Ahhhhgh!" she screamed as the pain in her ankle set in. An explosive tipped arrow missed her by a few feet but the smouldering debris showered her again subjecting her to small burns on her exposed arms.

Gritting her teeth, she hobbled across the bridge as fast as she could and threw herself into the tunnel entrance pressing herself against the wall to avoid the goblin's line of sight.  
Breathing heavily, she reached into her backpack to grab a health elixir only to her horror, find that a couple of potions had been smashed by the fall; the only potions she had now where the invisibility and invulnerability potions. Neither was of any use to her yet as you had to be in perfect health to use them.

"Great, just great. I suppose I will have to keep out of trouble and Arokh had better not hurt himself or I'm dead."  
She eased further into the tunnel and a clanging noise sounded; horrified, she saw a large set of swinging blades heading up the tunnel towards her. It would seem that things were going to get a lot harder...

"If I made it once in Arokh's lair, I'll make it here also" she murmured, and tried to choose the best moment to run. She noticed a small room into the wall meanwhile, and decided to take cover there while the spinning blade went by. Just when the blades passed by, she began to run like mad towards the small room. She was nearly there, when spikes from the room wall popped out. It was a deadly trap, but the timing mechanism weak with age – weak enough give Rynn a chance. She could hardly stop, and nearly ran into the spikes. But the clanging reminded her it was a bad idea to stand still there - so she could do nothing else but run, hoping she'll be fast enough to survive. Suddenly she heard the clanging noise of the blades just behind her. Panicking, she jumped. That saved her life - when she landed, the blades stopped and turned back.  
"I sometime envy that dragon for not being able to come into such places" she said to herself, and stood back on her feet.

The sound of claws on a dusty surface sounded nearby. Rynn looked in the direction of the sound drawing the ice blade in defence just in time to see a yellow and gold spider like creature creep round a rock inquisitive of the noise she had made.  
"A tick" Rynn whispered to herself, as it ran up to her, its claws clicking on the dust covered rocky floor. Rynn lashed out killing the creature in a couple of blows but it managed to embed one of its claws in her leg. She was really in a bad way now.

Slowly, Rynn edged against the wall and made her way around the cave she was now in hoping to keep out of sight of the goblins she could hear nearby. Two barrels sat against one wall, thankfully out of sight but not of earshot of any nearby enemies.  
"_I hope there is a health potion in there or I'm dead_" she thought. She swallowed hard realising she couldn't stand there all day and smashed open the barrels spilling their contents over the floor with an alarming clatter. There, amongst the supplies lay a vial of red liquid.

Rynn drank is contents fumbling about desperately. Some of her wounds were healed but she was still in pretty bad shape and not strong enough to use her invulnerability potions. There was only one way out of this mess and that was forwards; she couldn't face Arokh and tell him it was too difficult to get the amulet nor was she willing to take the risk of going back through the blade trap. She shrugged her shoulders and turned to walk down the only other tunnel leading out of the cave.

Several goblin voices sounded ahead as Rynn came up to a four way junction, ahead was a room full of goblins that suddenly came from a doorway off to the left. A mild panic began in her throat and she turned to run away but paused when an iron gate came crashing down preventing the goblins from reaching her. Somewhat relieved, Rynn looked around to see what her options were, two remaining paths lay open to her and a key could only reopen the now closed gate.

After a short while, Rynn decided to take the left hand path leading into a room full of wine caskets and a flight of stairs leading upwards. There was one goblin on the room who fired an arrow at her missing as she rolled to one side to avoid it. With an angry cry, Rynn ran at the green skinned creature, her ice sword outstretched.

The creature made a stab at her with its bayonet but Rynn blocked the attack with lightning response, her senses were still in good order. With a sideways swipe, she caught the goblin in the arm and quickly ran around to get behind it. However, the goblin proved to have more intelligence than she had anticipated and it quickly spun its gun around and stabbed her in the chest. Angry and now even weaker, Rynn summoned all her remaining strength jumping into the air and landing a downward chop on the goblin's head, spitting it in two.  
She wiped the sweat from her brow and collected a nearby health potion drinking it restoring some of her wounds but still not fully reviving her.

"_I'd better be careful. Perhaps a stealth approach would be best till I get more health_." She thought to herself as she began to climb the short stone staircase leading out of the room.

The staircase led to a short corridor from which two flights of stairs led one going down and one going up. Rynn carefully stood at the top of the stairs and peered round the corner. Two goblins talking to each other were stood about ten feet from her with their backs turned. Rynn could not understand what they were saying but she decided to listen for a while to see what they would do. She was sure one of them said the word 'Navaros' - a word which she was sure she read in the book found under the village temple earlier that day.

She moved her foot slightly and a small pebble rolled onto the stair below. One of the goblins turned round and Rynn quickly ducked out of sight, luckily the goblin turned away saying something to his companion and both began to walk down the stairs at the opposite end of the corridor.  
Rynn breathed a sigh of relief and carefully stepped into the well lit corridor; there were no shadows to hide in. Glancing to her right, she quickly ran up the stairs upon hearing the goblin's return stopping again to look for enemies.

Fortunately, the room the stairs led to was goblin free and appeared to be some sort of armoury. A potion of life was sat atop a wooden box, which she promptly collected an item to be used when she was really low on health. She could manage if she kept out of sight.  
The weapons rack provided her with a good choice of weapons to slay her enemies with but she couldn't carry them all. After looking them over for a while, she chose a great sword and a battle hammer, both heavy and slow weapons. She really wanted a lighter, faster sword as heavier weapons slowed her down. Nevertheless, A great sword was not to be sneezed at; it would be more than adequate for slaying goblins whilst staying out of reach of their bayonets.

As she was about to leave the room, she knocked over the weapons rack. Horrified, Rynn stood there a moment to listen. Her clumsiness had attracted the attention of the goblins that were now advancing quickly up the stairs.

Rynn fumbled about in her backpack and reached for an invisibility potion; she knew it wouldn't be as effective if she was injured as lost blood will be still visible. Making a split decision, she drank one of her potions just as the goblins came into the room.

"I could have sworn I heard something," one said in their local language.  
His companion eyed the room suspiciously and eventually said "weapon rack has been knocked over and some weapons are missing, whoever was here has now gone."  
Agreeing, the first one replied "Keep your eyes open, we are not alone here."

Meanwhile, Rynn had silently crept past, luckily for her, she was not bleeding and did not leave a trail for her enemies to follow and managed to make it back to the locked gate undetected. The gate was still locked leaving only one path remaining. Smashing a nearby barrel and gaining another fire crystal, she climbed the stairs and entered a small room containing a couple of Grull. One of them was carrying a small key, which had to be the one for the gate downstairs. Easy she thought.

A Grull was no match for Rynn now and she strode into the room, her sword held firmly in her hands. The Grull rose to the challenge but as he walked across the middle of the room, the ceiling above came down and crushed him them slowly retracted! Rynn, stood with her back to the wall was unharmed, so too was the other Grull carrying the key. "_That was close. I'd better not rush into things, I almost got myself killed_" she thought. The Grull growled and swiped at her with his club but it did not connect as the agile human quickly got out of the way retaliating taking him out with a single blow of the sword. Rynn took the key and carefully crept around the edge of the room, her back to the wall and returned downstairs to the gate.

The room was, as before, still full of goblins. Rynn fully healed herself using the only potion of life she had and grasped the fire crystal in one hand. With the other, she placed the key into the lock and turned it.

The nearest goblin turned round startled upon hearing the noise of the gate opening. He could not believe what he saw. A human! Surely no one would be stupid enough to venture into their lair on their own?

His eyes followed the human as she somersaulted through the air landing right in the middle of the crowd. She took a couple of hits from the dart guns but her heavy armour absorbed most of the damage, then, without warning, a wall of fire began to rush towards him. Aghast, the goblin made a run for the gate but it was too late as he was engulfed in deadly flames, the immense heat causing severe burns to his skin. Clawing desperately at the now closing gate trying to get through, another wall of flame engulfed him and then everything went black.

Rynn stood in the centre of the room admiring her handiwork and searched a couple of nearby chests for the amulet but nothing was to be found. A large wooden door leading to the main part of the lair was at one side of the room but she could find no way of opening it. It looked to her that the goblins had made the ancient ruins their entrance to the lair itself which presumably was underground. The amulet had to be within the ruins somewhere. She walked over to the opposite side of the room walking through another gate which closed with a crash behind her preventing her return.

"Seems I'm not going that way" she mumbled to herself climbing the steep stone steps into the room above. She placed her hand on the damp fungus covered wall and carefully leaned round the corner to watch for enemies. The room was empty bar a single pedestal in the centre with a cage suspended above. On the pedestal was what looked like a small amulet.

"Ah-ha" Rynn commented and crept into the room. Noting the cage above, she walked around the pedestal noticing four vents in the floor from which a strange odour emanated that made her feel slightly dizzy. Several glowing plants lit up the room with a green-yellow light, there were no artificial lights in the room. No-one had been here for centuries.

"_Hmm, maybe the Goblins didn't steal the amulet for after all. It was here all the time and it looks like its guarded by a trap of some sort, I wonder how I can disable it?_" she wondered.

As she looked around the room, the solution presented itself; one of the stone columns supporting the ceiling had partially collapsed and it could reach the pedestal. If the cage were to fall, she would have a gap to crawl through and escape. She pushed with all her strength on the ancient pillar sending it crashing to the floor, exploding on impact, the cement holding the stones together brittle and useless.

Rynn exhaled deeply in relief when one of the circular stones rolled beside the pedestal and stopped. Taking a deep breath to avoid the fumes from the vents, she ran grabbing the amulet as she went. As expected, the cage came crashing down and the vents began to pour green suffocating gas. Rynn spluttered and covered her mouth with one hand and rolled under the cage, lifted up at one side by the stone.

Coughing violently, Rynn ran out of the room into another corridor, again leading to an empty room bar a fountain by one wall. Rynn was very thirsty and stopped to drink from the wonderfully built stone structure. As she stepped into the water to drink from the central column, she was surprised to find her wounds healing! She drank a couple of handfuls of water revitalising her, making her ready for anything. She stepped out from the water feeling great, no longer tired from the fighting during the night and that morning.

"_Now to get back to Arokh. The exit must be around here somewhere_" she thought.

Exiting the fountain room, she stopped at the doorway. There, in front of her, were several skeletons scattered on the floor, some human, some Wartock. She could just see several holes in the wall at the opposite end of the corridor. "Another trap! Oh, Arokh, I wish I was you right now" she whispered.  
Rynn checked her armour; it was in good condition but she needed protection for her face. Two barrels were to one side; Rynn carefully removed the lid from one making a makeshift shield. She held it up to her face and ran down the corridor as arrows shot from the holes, some hitting home with incredible pain.

Making it through the trap, Rynn healed and came to a lift, large blood covered spikes came up from the floor making it impossible to climb onto the lift without injury. "Bah" Rynn snorted but decided to pull the lever bringing down the lift anyway. It had to be safe; the lift looked recently built, probably used by the goblins themselves.  
With a hiss, the spiked retracted as the lift platform came to rest on the muddy floor; rainwater had obviously come down the shaft turning the soil into a slippery mess. Relieved, Rynn climbed onto the lift and it began to take her upwards, towards daylight.

"Arokh!" she yelled as she ran from the lift and out of the small cave into the evening sun. Two goblins came to attack but several balls of flame came hurtling from the sky turning them to ash before they could fire their dart guns. The great red dragon landed nearby and beckoned to his companion.  
"Come Rynn, its safe" he said scratching at his neck where a rather nasty wound trickled blood pattering onto the rocks at his feet.

"I'd better get that seen to, but I have no healing potions left" Rynn remarked as she stood by Arokh's side. His great red head turned and fixed her with a glaring eye.  
"Did you succeed?" he asked sharply.  
"Of course" Rynn said pulling the amulet from her pocket. "Here look."  
Arokh smiled and his expression changed into a somewhat more pleasing one.  
"Excellent work, Rynn. Now, we must find Alwarren before the Dark Union gets their hands on that bellhammer. I suspect they already know what we plan to do and it will not be easy."

"Maybe, but surely they would want us to succeed. They want the rift crystal but only I can get it" Rynn pointed out.  
Arokh blew out a short gust of flame and turned his head to face her again. "The Dark Union has many tricks up its sleeves and its quite possible that they would get somebody else to obtain the rift crystal. Maybe they have changed their minds; I don't know. At the moment though, I guess they have underestimated us and would rather have us killed. The Succubi have a strange way of thinking that beggars belief sometimes."

Rynn nodded. "Lets get going, we should be careful."  
"I have something for you" Arokh said with a smile revealing a couple of health vials in his left foreclaw. "What?" Rynn asked wondering what the dragon could possibly give her as a present. "Here" he said as he handed them to her.  
"Oh, right I see. Anyway, let's get that wound healed before you bleed to death" Rynn suggested.  
"It's nothing. Come on, the way to Alwarren should be relatively clear, we can enjoy the scenery" the dragon smiled crouching slightly to let Rynn onto his back.

**Chapter Seven: The Ruins of Alwarren  
**  
They were flying for what seemed like hours but only a good forty minutes had passed since they had left the Goblin lair. The evening sun was still warm and it lit the golden sand below with a warm, pleasant glow.  
"This place is beautiful," Rynn said as Arokh landed by a stone ruin killing a couple of Grull as he did so.  
"Beautiful but deadly" the dragon answered in a cold tone.  
"It's strange. I could have sworn Alwarren was here, even the ruins should still be standing" he continued thoughtfully looking around the bleak landscape.

"Maybe your long sleep has made you forget" Rynn suggested.  
Arokh grunted "No, I am not mistaken, lets see what's down there" he said pointing to where a waterfall ran down a steep cliff to a small circular area of land below.

Without leaving Rynn to answer, Arokh glided down the cliff landing beside the river, which flowed, from the waterfall into a small hole in the rocks. "Arokh. Look behind" Rynn said noticing a large opening in the rocks blocked by ancient looking iron gates.  
Arokh turned round to see what his bonded was looking at, the dragon's jaws parted as he instantly recognised what he saw.  
"That's it! Its not quite as I remember but its the entrance to Alwarren alright!"

Arokh walked up to the gates with Rynn upon his back. He nudged at the gate with his nose and they slowly creaked open, Arokh then forcing his way though. They walked down the short tunnel and into a large underground cavern lit by strange glowing vegetation and the odd torch or two by the river that flowed through the middle. The sound of crickets and goblin voices could be heard echoing in the distance.

"What happened here?" Arokh said in surprise "Half of the city is gone."  
He cleared his throat and flew into the large cavern hovering for a moment to get aquatinted with his new surroundings. Several torches could be seen at various intervals stuck on spikes in the ground, Grull could just be made out in their vicinity.

Arokh looked to his right and landed by a large iron gate, the words "Alwarren, the city of..." carved into the rock around its perimeter, the last words corroded away with age. Arokh tried the gate but it was locked. Suddenly something startled him. A human, semi transparent like a ghost hovered in the air to his left. A yellow glow spread from around her as she glided down to the sandy floor.

"A soul shadow!" Arokh remarked in surprise.  
"Is that what I will turn into if you are killed?" Rynn whispered, herself unsure whether the being was friendly or not.  
"Yes" Arokh whispered back, eyeing the soul shadow with concern.  
"Welcome, I am what was known as Turi" the shadow introduced herself.  
"What happened here?" Arokh asked, wanting some explanation of why the city seemed to be under the ground rather on top of it.  
Answering the dragon's question, Turi began to speak. "It was the final days of the Order, I was assigned to protect the city with my bonded whilst the warriors went to fend off the advancing Dark Union forces. Unfortunately, they were all slain and the city was shortly overrun with Grull and Wartocks."  
"I see your bonded was killed then" Arokh noted.

Turi continued to explain. "Yes, the war giant, Tutol came with the others to attack the city. In a last ditch attempt, I left my dragon to try and kill Tutol whilst I concentrated on placing barrier seal around the city." Her eyes looked down at the ground as if she was ashamed. "It was a powerful spell that needed a lot of concentration. The spell went wrong and it resulted in the city being sunk into the ground and sealing my dragon inside the city with Tutol. As you can see, Tutol killed my bonded."

Arokh laughed and said scornfully "Are you stupid? Do you not know the implications of casting such a powerful spell?" He craned his neck closer, his jaws curved into a slight sneer.  
Turi was taken aback at Arokh's comment and spoke on a quieter voice. "Yes, I was aware, but... Ah, it does not matter. What is done is done."  
Arokh shook his head and fixed her with a scornful gaze. "You were very foolish," he said quietly.  
Turi looked into his eyes and quickly looked away, it was very difficult to outstare the imposing beast. "So, who are you and why are you here?" she eventually said trying not to make eye contact with the dragon.  
Rynn tried to say something about Delon but Arokh interrupted.

"It would seem the Dark Union has raised its head once more. I am Arokh, once bonded of the warrior Heron. Together, we managed to banish Navaros to the rift ending the Dark Wars."  
Turi glanced up at Arokh's piercing red eyes, but did not flinch this time. "So, you are the one. I heard the Order was planning a last stand but after my dragon's death, I heard no more of it." The soul shadow said, remembering her last days six centuries ago.  
"We need the bellhammer, Turi" Arokh said sternly. "Can you tell me where it is?"

"The hammer is inside the city seal and you will have to break the great spell of protection to enter. I can tell you how to do it but I need a favour first." Turi said flatly, refusing to tell the dragon how to break the seal.  
Arokh's eyes showed signs of impatience as he saw that Turi was staring to one side again. "Look at me when I'm talking to you. Don't you have any manners?" The dragon paused for a moment and continued. "I know what you want. You want me to get your dragon's soul crystal so you can earn your rest."

Turi smiled slightly. "Yes, bring me the crystal and I will tell you. My dragon's lair is around these underground caverns somewhere. Its not far."

"Okay, I will do it, trust me" Arokh replied.  
"Very well" Turi answered and disappeared in a flash of yellow light.  
"Don't you mean WE will get it?" Rynn objected noticing that Arokh did not include her in the conversation.  
"I suppose so" Arokh snorted and lifted into the air.  
"Pity you couldn't persuade Turi to help us first, we are in a hurry after all," Rynn said bitterly.  
Arokh didn't reply and continued to fly down the canyon firing balls of flame at the Grull below as he went.

Eventually, they came to a fork in the cavern; one path led ahead, over a waterfall and back into daylight, the other went through a large opening to the left. Arokh landed beside the river and bent his neck to take a sip of the water.  
"Thirsty?" Rynn asked with a smile.  
"Ahh, that's good" the dragon remarked tilting his head back so the cool water could run down his throat. He growled with content as he stretched his wings and plunged his head underwater for a few moments shaking it violently, droplets of water flying off in all directions.

"Feel better?" Rynn asked, "You seemed to be enjoying that."  
Arokh let out a long, slow contented growl. "Yeah. Better than sex. There's nothing like a cool drink when you really need one, I was almost drying up."  
Rynn placed one hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle. Suddenly, Arokh gave a roar of pain and Rynn felt a sharp stabbing pain in her back.  
"What was that!" She yelled.

Arokh whirled round to face a brave Grull who had just embedded his shortsword in the dragon's tail. It cowered in fear when it realised what it had done, the dragon's head coming closer.  
"You shouldn't have done that" Arokh snarled and picked up the terrified creature in his mouth sinking his teeth into its un-armoured flesh. Blood ran from either side of his jaws as he opened them again and let the gory mess fall onto the floor. A look of disgust crossed his razor toothed mouth as he turned around again to rinse in the river.

"Bastards!" Arokh snarled examining the wound on his tail. "No matter, we will continue. Which way?" He asked his friend.  
"Whatever you think is best Arokh" she replied.  
"This way then" the dragon replied turning to walk through the hole in the cavern wall.

The hole in the cavern wall led through to another underground part of the area around the sunken city. Ruins of former buildings that once stood on the outskirts of the ancient city lay scattered throughout the underground network of caves and caverns. Some even still had the thick wooden floors intact despite the length of time they had been there.

Rynn wiped her brow and looked around seeing that the sandy path led slowly upwards to where smoke from a campfire rose from an area above.  
"Phew, it's warm here. Are you warm as well Arokh?" she asked the dragon who was still picking the bits of Grull from his teeth with his tongue.  
The dragon swallowed and gave a look of disgust. "Yeah, but I'm not too bad at the moment. My blood temperature has more or less adjusted to the new environment now."

"What? You can adjust your blood temperature!" Rynn exclaimed.

Arokh coughed, his face distorted into a look of discomfort and began to explain. "Well, to some extent. Unlike other reptiles, Dragons have warm blood like humans but we don't sweat quite like you do. To keep cool, dragons simply drop their blood temperature a little to suit the environment but of course there are limits. Also, I can make my scales stand more upright to let out more heat and I will sweat through the soles of my feet to reduce body temperature quickly."

"Oh. Kind of useful huh? Well, remind me to keep away from them in the summer. I don't wish to know what your sweaty feet smell like" Rynn laughed.

Arokh laughed slightly in response noting her humour and walked up the path suddenly stopping when he noticed something.  
"Shh, quiet Rynn. Look up there, you can just make out a catapult gun; you know like the ones fired at us in those canyons leading to the mines. It seems they haven't seen us yet."  
"Well do something about it then" Rynn hissed.  
"Nothing I can't take care of" Arokh grunted and let loose a lethal ball of flame at the catapult which erupted in flames, the Grull operator running for his life.

"Ah, a bit of fun, lets give chase and hunt him down!" Arokh snarled and flew up into the air chasing after the small creature who hid inside a small alcove. Arokh landed outside and reached in pulling the frightened creature out and pinning him to the ground.  
"Little Grull thinks he can hurt me" Arokh laughed scornfully as he scratched its face with a claw, the creature letting out a faint cry of pain. Arokh let go and kicked the Grull hard and again pinned him to the stony ground, the creature now letting out a more prominent bellow of pain.  
"That's right, scream in pain little Grull, I'm enjoying the sound of it" Arokh laughed continuing to toy with the terrified beast.

"Leave him alone you big bully. Just kill it and lets go" the exasperated Rynn suggested beginning to walk away in the hope that Arokh would give up and follow her.  
"I'm only having a bit of fun" Arokh growled.

Rynn sighed and began to walk back to him when she realised she was wasting her time walking away.  
"You can be quite cruel sometimes Arokh" she said seeing what he had done.  
"It's only a Grull, Rynn. You hate them as well don't you?" The dragon asked surprised at what Rynn had said.  
"Well, yeah but... Oh never mind," she said, realising that it was not worth starting another argument. She was beginning to like the great red dragon and deep down she knew he had similar feelings for her too. She also knew that Arokh could be a real nasty piece of work if angered too much and his wild tempers were unpredictable.

"I suppose we should start looking for this lair. It may be difficult to spot due to the recent rock falls so keep your eyes open" Arokh continued as he stamped on the Grull's head ending its life.  
"I will" Rynn answered wearily beginning to walk away again leaving Arokh to follow.

They eventually found the lair of Turi's dragon about half an hour later. It lay just outside the city gates and the soul bound pair met little resistance in the form of Grull and a few goblins. As Arokh thought, the path leading to the lair was blocked by a rock fall leaving only a small gap big enough for Rynn to crawl through.

"Ill have to go alone," Rynn said, hopping off from the dragon's back.  
"Okay, be careful, there still might be loose rocks so try not to disturb anything. With a bit of luck the soul crystal will be intact" Arokh answered from behind, the dragon concerned for her life and in turn his through the bond. It would have been devastating for the world if they failed to obtain the rift crystal.

Rynn nodded and crawled through the small hole dropping into a dark cave lit only by the green glowing plants found throughout the caverns. She could see that the hole in the top of the lair was blocked as well, several rocks lay strewn around the pedestal in the centre of the circular room.

Carefully, Rynn crept up to the structure used for bonding of a human and a dragon. It was made of blue coloured crystal unlike the golden brown colour of the one found in Arokh's lair. In the centre of the pedestal, the soul crystal sat no longer glowing with the dragon's soul and powers. It was dark and covered with dust; it only contained Turi's soul now, the dragon part long gone never to return.

Rynn hastily grabbed the soul crystal and put it into her pocket. Without warning, a flaming spear shot past her making a clink and a clattering sound as it hit the rocks behind. "_That sounded familiar_" she thought.  
Fearfully, she looked up to find two flame knights facing her, the same kind as the one who almost killed her back in the Grimstone mines!

"_How am I going to get out if this one?_" She thought as she ran behind the pedestal to take cover. She quickly took the speed bow into her hands and loaded it with magic arrows, noting that there was only one quiver left which held ten arrows. The magical projectiles found their targets with deadly precision, not a single one failed. However the knight's strong armour served its purpose and both knights were only partially wounded and still capable of turning Rynn into bloody strips of flesh in seconds.

Rynn grabbed the mace of the hand and ran at one of the knights at a right angle to try and draw him away from his companion. She now had a better weapon than the flamesword but this time there were two knights and it would be suicidal to take both of them on at once. Rynn knew what she was doing; she could use the pedestal and the surrounding rocks to her advantage to get the upper hand of her opponents. Of course, there was the option of running away if fortune were to turn against her, the knights probably would not bother to follow through the small hole.

A loud metallic clang sounded as the mace connected with the knight's armour punching a hole in the metal plates. The knight growled in pain but no blood seeped from the wound; Rynn could just see that there was no flesh underneath, just a swirling mass of what seemed like multi coloured fog.

"_Arokh was right, they are nothing more than suits of armour possessed by a spirit"_ she thought as she rolled to avoid one of the knight's flaming swords. A flaming spear thrown from the other knight missed her leg by a few feet, clattering to the floor harmlessly. The spears continued to rain down albeit more slowly, the knight did not want to hit his companion by accident.  
Rynn did a sideways flip and swung the mace round in a wide arc hitting the knight in the leg causing him to buckle a little. He snarled and unleashed his ring of fire attack in a desperate attempt to win the battle.

Rynn saw the oncoming wall of flame and rolled backwards to avoid it then jumping to her feet, leaping over the now diminishing flames landing out of harm's way. The knight who was throwing spears was not so lucky; he was caught right in the middle of the searing flames, which took away a large portion of his life essence.

To Rynn's surprise, the knight turned on his companion and swiftly killed him; he was obviously not best pleased of his companion's stupidity. Taking advantage of the situation, Rynn ran past the knight and up the path leading back to the rock fall. She desperately climbed the few rocks and slid through the hole emerging above Arokh's head.

"Could you help me down?" she said to the dragon who looked up upon hearing her voice.  
"Yes, of course. Here, jump onto my back" he replied as he got as close as he could to the fallen rocks. Rynn leapt and landed on the lower part of the dragon's neck and promptly fell off as Arokh lowered his head with the impact.  
"Oooff! Could you be more careful!" he said sharply.  
"Sorry" Rynn mumbled and dusted herself down. "I have the crystal by the way."  
"Ah, good. I'm glad it was still intact. Come on, we should get back to Turi or whatever her name is, we should not delay. Hopefully she should then let us into the city" Arokh continued, pleased that his bonded had not let him down.

"I agree, this place gives me the creeps" Rynn answered climbing onto Arokh's scaly back settling comfortably. She could feel the dragon's powerful muscles moving as he walked to the gateway, the movement of his body offering some comfort; she had nothing to fear whilst sat upon the dragon.

As they neared the gate, it suddenly slammed shut and a resounding click, clunk sound followed as the gate was locked. A lone Grull was seen running away.  
"Great. Now what?" Rynn said disappointed. Arokh frowned, he wasn't so sure, there had to be another way out. He looked around and almost immediately saw the answer.  
"There is another way, Rynn. See that gate there?" Arokh pointed out.  
"Yeah but that's locked as well" she answered.  
"Look more carefully Rynn. Its not that hard to figure out is it?" Arokh laughed.  
"I see what you mean now," Rynn said after a short silence jumping off for a closer look. "The gate is unlocked by that lever at the other side. I could reach through and pull it if I had something long and thin" she continued.

Arokh shook his head and smiled. He placed one foot on her head and forced her round to face a small opening at the side of the gate used for smaller beings such as humans. Back in the city's heydays, the main gates were typically only used for vehicles and dragons to get through and were normally closed.  
"Look" he said bluntly.  
Rynn blushed with embarrassment. "I must be blind. I'm not quite myself; I'm tired and worried about my brother."  
"Well, you don't seem tired enough to fight. You excel at that" the dragon quickly answered.  
Rynn paused for a moment and eventually replied. "Yeah, you are right."

The dragon's foot slid down her head so part of her face was covered obscuring her view. "Arokh, I'd be grateful if you would get your foot out of my face" she objected.  
"Oh. Sorry" he replied and placed it back on the dusty floor smiling to himself.  
"Wait here, Ill go and open the gate" Rynn said and made her way for the opening in the rocks which brought her out at the other side of the gate.

Quickly looking around for enemies, she pulled the lever and the gates swung open, Arokh walking through to greet her. He made a swipe at the lever with his tail closing the gates and pushed a nearby boulder over the hole in the rocks.  
"We don't want anyone following us" he said when he saw Rynn's puzzled expression. Rynn shrugged and mounted him and they continued down the damp moss covered tunnel killing goblins as they went; Arokh belching clouds of flame incinerating anything before them.

A short while later, they came to a small underground lake. It was deathly quiet in the cavern bar the distant noises of Grull and Wartocks; out of harm's way for now. Even the sounds of the toads and other wildlife were silent.  
"Rynn, it looks like there is something over there at the other side" Arokh commented noticing something metallic glinting in the faint light.  
"Ill go over and have a look" she said jumping off and wading into the cool water bringing some thermal relief; she wasn't used to the warm and humid climate of the Southeast.

Rynn grabbed the object noting the nearby skeleton that was probably the previous owner and returned to Arokh.  
"It's a key," she said holding it up to show the dragon.  
"Oh. Really. Is that what it is?" Arokh said sarcastically. Rynn looked up in anger at the dragon's sarcasm but her expression changed when she realised he wasn't being nasty, rather _trying_ to be amusing.

Smiling, Rynn began to follow the path around the lake towards a stone doorway.  
"There must be a lock it works in around here," she said quietly to herself.  
"Ill wait here" Arokh shouted back from where he was standing "If you get into trouble, give me a shout."

Rynn cautiously entered the doorway and quickly stepped back when she noticed the deep pit in front of her. It was difficult to see in the poor light and would have resulted in a messy end if she fell in. A water fountain and a basin were fixed to one wall fed by a channel cut into the rocks leading to the lake above. She was standing in the ruins of a building of some sort, now occupied by Grull and Wartocks going by the sounds nearby.

Creeping round the room, she crept into a stone tunnel as silently as possible, the voices of Wartocks getting louder and a strong artificial light shone from the room ahead. Hoping to go unnoticed, Rynn peered round the doorway into the brightly-lit room in which several Grull and two Wartocks sat on wooden benches talking and laughing. Several chests and boxes were set against the walls. Noticing a small gate blocking a small alcove set into the wall, it seemed obvious that the key she held unlocked it, which would reveal the chest behind.

Carefully, she thought of her best tactic, she had found a fire crystal with three charges, which was found earlier near the Dragon's Lair and it seemed the logical weapon to use. The mace would finish them off. She drew a sharp breath and grabbed the fire crystal in one hand and the mace in the other and ran into the room.

The battle was short lived but Rynn was seriously injured in the fight and drank one of her limited supply of health potions. Panting, she placed the key in the lock and as she guessed, the gate retracted into the ceiling and the top of the chest opened revealing its contents. Rynn reached in and pulled out a worn axe and examined it closely; it was a magical weapon of some sort given away by the crystal embedded in the handle.

"_This has been locked away for a reason, I wonder what it does_" she wondered adding it to her collection throwing away a shortsword to make room.  
Rynn turned and made her way to where she came into the ancient building but stopped dead when she heard footsteps of something large coming her way. Whatever it was, had stopped outside; too big to fit through the doorway.  
Rynn's heart was now racing, he hoped it was not another giant, she feared them the most. Carefully, she edged around the room trying not to attract attention to herself, wiping her brow as a mild panic set in.

Rynn gulped and walked out of the doorway to come face to face with her bonded companion.  
"Oh, its you" she said as she breathed a sigh of relief.  
The majestic beast looked her over and smiled. "I thought I'd see what you were up to."  
Rynn swallowed and leant against a rock. "I thought you were a giant!"  
"Do I really make that much noise?" Arokh laughed.  
Rynn didn't answer and climbed onto his back. "Ugh you are all wet" she exclaimed as she settled in-between his shoulders.  
"Well, I thought I'd take a bath while you were gone. I was starting to smell a bit and that blood was a mild irritation to my scales. I found it was very refreshing" he answered.  
"Oh right. Something I'm looking forward to when this is all over; a bath" Rynn grunted as the dragon began to walk back up the path, this time following the other fork in the path ahead.

The path eventually brought them out in an open clearing and as they emerged from the tunnel, they were immediately attacked by a War Giant and two catapults. Arokh made short work of the catapults but the giant was somewhat more of a challenge, hurling razor sharp axes at frightening speed.  
The dragon circled the beast avoiding its projectiles getting his own attacks in whenever he could. He chose ice as his breath weapon as it was certainly the most powerful he had at that moment.

Soon, the war giant froze solid and Arokh stopped to hover in front.  
"Do you want the pleasure?" he asked his rider.  
"Aye." Rynn answered firing an arrow into the frozen beast shattering it into hundreds of pieces.  
"What the hell was that?" She asked. It looked to her like the giant she encountered earlier but it had tough, grey rhino like skin instead of brown fur and wore orange coloured armour on its arms and legs. As always, Arokh knew the answer.  
"A War Giant. Basically a more powerful variant of the standard Giant but these have been genetically modified to be stronger. Tutol is a War Giant as well, you know the one which Turi spoke of?" The dragon explained.  
"Yeah" Rynn replied. "Talking of which, I think this waterfall leads back down to the city entrance."

it was only a matter of minutes before they arrived back at the city gates, Turi suddenly appearing before them like before.  
"Ah, you have found it! I never thought I would see that again" the soul shadow exclaimed.  
"Well, now what?" Rynn snapped impatiently.  
"I want you to do one more final thing" Turi continued. Rynn's shoulders sank in exasperation at the thought of traipsing through more overgrown, dark and dangerous ruins when she had better things to do.  
"Place my soul crystal onto my remains and I will open the gate. I will then be able to earn my rest" Turi pleaded.

"No problem" Rynn said jumping off Arokh and walking over to where a human skeleton lay on the ground surrounded by a blue aurora. Carefully she placed the crystal onto the bones and the blue glow was absorbed into the crystal then it shattered and dissolved.  
"You have freed me!" Turi shouted as the city gate swung wide open. "The gates are now open. Now, before I leave this world, I must warn you of the perils inside. Tutol has only had hunger and madness as companions and he will be very dangerous. His masters gave him powers to be able to live for centuries without food or water. Be careful."

"Okay, I will" Rynn answered flatly. "And good luck" she added in a kinder voice as she suddenly felt that she had been rude and unforgiving of Turi's situation.  
"Very well, farewell Rynn, Arokh. You know what to do. Collect the six barrier seal runes and place them in the city seal. You will see it when you get there, you can't miss it."

Rynn nodded and uttered a quiet "goodbye" as Turi faded never again to return.

Rynn and Arokh entered the city, noticing almost immediately that the first rune was straight in front, on a pedestal, surrounded by fire spouts emitting searing flames that would kill in a matter of seconds. However, some were blocked by pieces of rock that could have fallen from the ceiling. Rynn glanced at her bonded. "This one seems easy. Hold here a bit while I go get it."  
"Watch out." Arokh replied "It may appear to be simple, but looks can be deceiving."  
"Well, that's why you're here; to cover my back." Rynn commented with a smile, as the red dragon murmured something and watched the young girl while she walked through to the pedestal.

She approached it with caution, trying to figure what kind of traps could be waiting for her, until she almost could touch the blue stone with her hands. Remembering that she could not waste much time in working on techniques to take a stone of a pedestal, while her brother could be suffering the worst of luck, she grabbed the rune with both hands and quickly dodged aside, in an effort to avoid any trap... that didn't occur. Just when she was beginning to place the rune on her backpack, she heard Arokh shout "Rynn! Behind you!" and a flaming spear grazed her left leg, burning through leather and burning her skin. Rynn screamed in pain, dropped her backpack, grabbed her mace of the hand and turned around to face a flame knight that had already readied his two swords. She began walking in his direction, but Arokh advised her to get out of the way, and shot a couple of fireballs that reduced the knight to nothing.

"Thanks, Arokh" Rynn said when the dragon arrived near her.  
"You're welcome. How's your leg?" the dragon asked.  
"Not bad, but it could be better" she replied, grimacing in pain when she touched the wound.  
"Well, what now?" Arokh said.  
Rynn looked around, and noticed that the only way out, besides a opening on the far wall closed by the blue barrier, was a downward slope that let to a man made stone corridor.  
"I'll have to go alone from here. I don't think that that tunnel is wide enough for you..."  
"Are you calling me fat again?" Arokh raised a eyebrow.  
"No, no, it's not that, just the ceiling is too low for you to walk through this tunnel."  
"Hmm, alright then." The tone of his voice lowered and when he saw Rynn heading to the opening shouted after her "Aren't you gonna leave some stuff behind, to make space for the runes and the Bellhammer?"  
"That's a good idea, Arokh" Rynn nodded and walked back to him dropping all but her mace of the hand and healing potions at his feet. "Look after them for me" she said as she ran back towards the path leading down into the ruins.

"I will" Arokh said but Rynn was already out of earshot.

The tunnel's inclinations were a bit high, so the young woman just slid down into the corridor, standing up where the ceiling was higher. As soon as she stepped on in, she felt the rocks under her feet beginning to fall and stepped back quickly. She noticed a scavenger in front of her, hissing and already threatening her with his blood-covered claws. Sighing, she ran as fast as she could with the mace in her hand avoiding the loose stones, immediately delivering a hit on the creature as soon as it was within her reach. The abomination didn't last long, and when it collapsed, she cleaned the sweat on her forehead and rested for a minute or so.

As Rynn continued her trek through the derelict ruins of Alwarren, the Succubi queen was getting impatient.  
"Why are they taking so long?" Queen Shilla snapped as she sat down on her throne, her bat like wings folded at her side. A long silence followed, only the distant echoes of tortured human screams could be heard in the distance.

The silence was eventually broken as a Ebon knight stepped forward and bowed, a large red sword hung from his belt which gave off a barely audible moaning sound.  
"I guess they have run into difficulties. The Wartocks we sent to tell the forces in the city of Alwarren that we want the human and the dragon alive have failed. They were killed by the dragon himself" he drawled from within his steel suit.

Shilla gave an impatient sigh. "Stupid Wartocks. I knew I shouldn't have trusted them; I guess we are lucky that the human is still alive. Its too late for us to mount an assault on them now as our forces are severely weakened; we underestimated the human's strength."  
The knight nodded. "I will go and warn our troops myself" he said politely, bowing again and began to make his way to the exit.

"No! Wait!" Shilla shouted after him. "I have a better idea. For now, we might as well cut our losses and just hope that the human retrieves the bellhammer. Once she enters Rimril's tower, her dragon and Rimril will have a nasty surprise in store for them."  
"What will that be my queen?" the knight asked with a smile.  
"Wait and see. Wait and see" Shilla answered with a shrill laugh, which filled the throneroom with the horrible sound.

For them, it seemed that everything was going to plan; Rynn had already collected five of the barrier rune keys and was almost about to reach the sixth.

Rynn carefully tread on the loose rocks under her feet, placing her hand on the wall to steady herself. Ahead, the stone corridor she was in opened out to a large chamber, with ruins of buildings on either side. She could see the light from the last rune glowing in the dimly lit cave.

With a final jump, she made it into the chamber and walked over to the sixth rune. Like the others, it was surrounded by spouts that gushed searing flames only this time there was no way to avoid them. The previous one was easy; she only had to smash a nearby sink flooding the floor and putting out the flames, but no such luck this time.

She looked around the chamber; it was obviously a street of the ancient city as the rotten remains of wooden built houses stood on either side, most covered in rocks and mud. Ahead, the 'street' ended where some steps led up to an old temple of only which the front was visible. One of the doors lay to one side and stones and soil blocked the entrance to the interior. A broken statue of a dragon sat atop a stone column at one side of the steps, its counterpart at the other side totally collapsed.  
Rynn shuddered as a cold shiver went up her spine, thinking what happened to the inhabitants of the city at that fateful moment when Turi's spell went wrong. Most of the houses would have been inhabited.

The weary woman sat down on the steps for a moment to tighten her bootlaces, watching for enemies but the place was silent apart from the noises of the insects and wild animals that had made Alwarren their home for the last six centuries.  
Getting to her feet, Rynn noticed that the remains of a circular stone column rested at the top of the stairs, directly in the path of the pedestal.  
"Hmm, I wonder if I can move that" she whispered to herself thinking that the stone might be able to knock the rune from its resting place.

Rynn climbed the stairs and pushed the heavy stone that surprisingly moved easily despite its weight and it crashed down the stairs rolling across the chamber floor and right into the pedestal knocking the rune onto the floor.  
"Yes!" Rynn cried with surprise and happiness. She walked over to the rune and pocketed it.  
"Now to find the city seal" she remarked as she walked between the remains of two houses towards the blue aurora covering the City Square, which emanated a low humming sound from the energy keeping it in place.

The seal was not hard to find; Turi had placed the runes more or less on a circular path through the ruins and the barrier seal lay at one end of the main street leading into the city square. Rynn scrambled down some fallen rocks to a large marble slab in the floor, the Order's insignia carved into the surface. Six pedestals were on the marble on top of where the jewels would normally be on the Order's symbol.

Rynn suddenly noticed that the locket she wore around her neck bore the same symbol; the locket was given to her by her mother a long time ago and she had said it once belonged to a warrior of the Order but Rynn did not believe her. She suddenly realised her mother was probably telling the truth.

Pondering for a moment, remembering her mother so cruelly murdered by Wartocks, Rynn began to place the runes onto the pedestal and the humming suddenly stopped as the barrier dissolved. Outside, Arokh looked up from where he was sitting and began to make his way into the city. Rynn paused and began to walk up the main street towards the belltower noting the skeleton of a dragon nearby which she assumed was the remains of Turi's.

Rynn could see the dragon coming towards her, his head held high and his majestic body swaying gently from side to side as he walked. It appeared to Rynn that he walked slowly as if he had all the time in the world.

They met each other in the Town Square next to the belltower. Arokh tried to speak but Rynn interrupted him.  
"Its about time you showed up!" she said angrily.  
Arokh was taken aback for a moment and at first; he thought his bonded was joking but realised she wasn't when he saw the look on her face.

"What! How did you expect me to get through the seal, hmm? Maybe you should have completed your tasks quicker, there was nothing I could do until you brought down the barrier" he said quietly, he was clearly angered but not furious.  
Rynn realised that the dragon was correct but did not reply.  
"Well, if you are not too busy, perhaps you should think about getting that bellhammer. We want to avoid Tutol at all possible" Arokh continued, anger still in his voice.

"Don't be stupid Arokh. Turi must have lost track of the time she has spent down here. Nothing could live that long, there is nothing left of Tutol but dust and bones" she snapped.  
Just then, a low growl sounded nearby, like a large creature stirring from a heavy sleep.  
"Oh yeah? Look" Arokh growled as he nodded his head in the direction of where the sound came from.

Arokh leapt into the air with his powerful hind legs just as a large axe hit the ground where he had been stood. Arokh began to circle round Tutol so he could attack from behind but the interior of the cavern made it somewhat difficult.  
"Two of us would be better, help me out here" Arokh shouted after shooting several bolts of ice into the immense creature's body.  
"Now Rynn. Use your arrows, aim for his eyes if you can" Arokh yelled again, his voice showing the strain of sudden manoeuvres to avoid Tutol's projectiles.

"Good idea" Rynn answered and shot an arrow at Tutol's head as Arokh came round to face him. Unfortunately it wasn't good enough; the arrow bounced off the war giant's tough rhino like skin and fell to the floor useless.  
"Its no good, they aren't sharp enough" Rynn muttered as another axe sailed past her ear.  
Arokh tried fire this time, engulfing the lower half of the creature's body in flames. Tutol roared in pain and anger desperately trying to take cover. Arokh tried again, this time severely weakening his foe but he wasn't quick enough to see Tutol throw another axe; all that Arokh saw was an axe emerging from the firestorm in front of him and hitting him squarely in the face.

A deafening roar filled the cavern as Arokh reeled in pain, hovering in the air for a moment dazed with the impact. Tutol gave scornful laugh like one would when about to kill an inferior being and came ambling over, his face drawn into a hideous grin. Rynn, also dazed by the impact still had just enough strength to fire one last arrow straight into the creature's open mouth penetrating the soft skin tissue and embedding itself into the brain.

Tutol didn't even groan; he simply fell backwards and crashed to the ground, his long life finally at an end.  
"Phew, that was close" Rynn coughed.  
"What do you mean? He got me" Arokh groaned covering his nose to help stem the blood. He was cut short by the sound of a large rune appearing out of the ground next to Tutol's body, like the one produced upon an elder breed dragon's death.

"Arokh, is that...?" Rynn whispered.  
"Yes, Tutol must have indeed been a powerful creature. He must have absorbed Turi's dragon's rune. Usually only magi, wizards and Elder Breed dragons produce such runes." Arokh noted, his voice muffled by the blood collecting in his throat.  
"Here, drink a health potion, I don't have the strength to fly up to it" the dragon mumbled.  
"Sure, hang on" his bonded replied, drinking a potion after pulling one from her backpack. Rynn wondered how many more of the potions she could drink; she was sure she was hearing things, possibly a side effect. Nobody she knew had drunk as many as she had since the attack on her village and she was sure somebody had told her there were side effects of drinking too many in a short period of time.

With Arokh's strength and stamina partially restored, he flew up to absorb the rune gaining the breath weapon of lightning and fully restoring his health at the same time. He glided down to the floor and looked over to the bellhammer and back to his human friend.  
"Lightning. A very powerful breath weapon indeed while it lasts" he growled. "Come on, grab that damn hammer then we can get out of here."  
"Nothing would please me more at this moment" Rynn shuddered walking over to the partially submerged tower to take the hammer from its pedestal. She only had to climb a short ladder to reach her goal.

Carefully she examined the ancient long handled hammer. "I'd better be careful with this. It looks like it will break at any moment" she noted as she ran her hand down the rotten wooden handle.  
"As long as it holds out just to hit the bell in Rimril's tower that's all that is needed. Now, let's go. We can stop off at the various islands on the way to the tower if you wish to explore" Arokh reassured her dipping to let her onto his back.  
"Ill see" Rynn nodded and together, the pair of them left the once vibrant city collecting Rynn's dropped weapons as they went and began to head back the way they came to Rimril's tower where Rynn's abilities would be tested to the full.

**Chapter Eight: The Test of the Tower  
**  
It was almost nightfall when they reached the tower. Rynn had collected some more arrows; one a box of explosive tipped magic arrows and a few more health elixirs. She was getting impatient wondering what was happening to her brother and why it was really necessary to take this stupid test.

The moment Arokh landed in front of the tower, Rimril materialised before him.  
"Ah, I see you were successful" he said bowing before the majestic beast. Rynn slid off the dragon's back and stood by his side fixing Rimril with tired and impatient eyes.  
"We encountered difficulties but nevertheless we are here now" Arokh grinned, his eyes flicking over to his bonded to see if she acknowledged him.  
Rynn met the dragon's glance for a split second and stepped forward to speak to the guardian magi.

"What now? I want to get this over and done with" she snapped impatiently, easing forward towards the tower doors.  
"Don't be so hasty" Rimril answered "The tower is full of traps that test your mental and physical capabilities. Impatience will get you killed."  
Rynn sighed and frowned at the mage.  
"He's right Rynn" Arokh said softly. "We have come so far and we don't want to fail now."  
There was a long pause and eventually Rynn mumbled "I will be careful, the thought of finding my brother will keep me going. Now, if you would Rimril, open the doors."

Rimril did not reply but the doors suddenly swung wide open and without hesitating Rynn ran straight through turning around briefly to take one last look at Arokh.  
The dragon and the magi looked after her for a moment. "She is certainly keen" Rimril said as she disappeared up the stairs at the opposite end of the entrance hall.

"Do you think she will be okay?" Arokh said quietly, his head hung low, deep down he thought the woman would fail, she was far too over confident.  
"Yes. She will be fine, I can sense it" Rimril assured him turning to face the dragon.  
"Well, she will be a while, what about getting to know each other? I mean, I knew you as an apprentice mage but clearly you are more than that now. Aren't you?" Arokh asked Rimril wanting to know how he managed to get to be the guardian magi.

Rimril laughed "I am still an apprentice but seem as I am the only surviving magi of the Order, I guess it makes me a master. Draw your own conclusions Arokh."  
Arokh gave a sad smile. "I remember that last battle well. A tragic loss."  
"Yeah but it seems that the Dark Union has come back and the threat is real. At the moment, the three of us are not much match against them but once you and Rynn get the Runeblade it will be much easier." Rimril continued walking over to a rock and sitting down.

"What happened to the Runeblade?" Arokh asked suddenly.  
Rimril shifted about on the rock as if he was uncomfortable, how Arokh didn't know; he was not a mortal form. "Ill let you in on a secret; the legends say no-one knows what happened to it; it was meant to be this way. The blade was not broken in two, rather the rift crystal separated from the blade. You know where the crystal is but the blade was taken away by the remnants of Navaros's troops and kept hidden from the world." Rimril explained.  
Arokh coughed and sat down by Rimril's side.  
"Somehow, I have the feeling it will be easy to find..." He said looking up to the now almost jet black sky.

Suddenly, Rimril froze, horrified as if he had seen his worst fear. Arokh looked up concerned and quickly looked behind him to see if anything had sneaked up behind but there was nothing.  
"What's wrong?" Arokh demanded, he did not like this at all, somehow something felt different in him too; he could tell something was wrong.  
"The Rift. Its open!" Rimril said with fear in his voice.  
"What!" Arokh growled raising his voice. "You mean...?"  
"Yes, the Succubi have managed to re-open it" Rimril faltered.  
"But how, they do not have the rift crystal" Arokh wondered, now highly concerned for his and the world's safety, the fear even showed in his eyes.  
"Don't worry Arokh. There is a safeguard in place, although the rift is open, no-one can enter or leave without the rift crystal. It's my magic they copied." He laughed slightly in bemusement.  
"I don't know what they are planning but it cannot be good. It would explain the vast amounts of grimstone they have been mining. Me and Rynn passed through a large mine on our way here" Arokh noted.

Rimril shook his head in dismay. "Grimstone. They must be building a gateway to the rift world; they cannot get in through the normal entrance so they must be building an alternative way in!"  
"Then why would they bother to open the rift? I don't suppose you think? Navaros was killed wasn't he?" Arokh asked fearfully desperate for answers.  
"I don't know my friend. You should know better than me..." Rimril was suddenly cut short as an energy bolt shot from the sky knocking him unconscious and severely weakened. Arokh immediately glanced around in anger firing a fireball in the direction of the energy bolt but it was all in vain. He suddenly found himself surrounded by Succubi and then everything went black...

Inside, Rynn stopped as a feeling of nausea went over her. Something was wrong but she could not turn back; the test of the tower was one way only. Having made her way through the first test, she moved on to the second. She now had Arokh to worry about as well as her brother...

Rynn advanced further up the stairs; the last 'test' was fairly difficult, as lava from a nearby volcano had seeped into the ancient fortress destroying the lower levels. Rynn had to jump onto unstable ruins to reach a doorway at the top of the room. It was also unbearably hot and she did not have any water with her. Licking her dry lips to stop them splitting she walked through another portcullis which slammed shut behind her preventing her return.

Ahead, the test involved jumping over lava pits onto protruding stones. "_Easy_" she thought as she stepped up to the edge. Immediately, stone blocks started to come from the walls meeting in the middle. It was not so easy after all; she would have to jump onto each stone at the right moment to avoid been either squashed or pushed into the lava.  
"Great. Just great" she moaned. She could not stay there for too long though as the fumes from the lava below was becoming unbearable and she faltered for a moment; the heat was beginning to get to her. However Rynn was agile and quick, she put all her weapons away and leapt onto the first stone jumping to the second just as a stone block came from the left dropping to where she had just been standing. Not stopping to take a breath, she leapt to the second stone neatly evading another crushing block and finally she did a double jump onto the third stone and eventually into the passage at the other side.

"Phew" she sighed leaning against the wall to catch her breath; the passage was somewhat cooler and brought some relief. The next two tests were very similar and Rynn managed to get through them with ease. She also managed to find a secret cave opened by a rock fall, which contained a war axe in pristine condition and a couple of health elixirs.  
As Rynn dropped into the final room, it appeared to have a dead end; a high wall was at the opposite end and between it and the ceiling she could see a huge bell suspended high above in a shaft beyond the wall. Seeing no way to get through, she leant on the wall and to her surprise a brick retracted and a loud sound of stone scraping on stone echoed through the room.

Above, stones began to fall from the roof. "A trap!" she exclaimed and ran out of the room as quickly as she could but the portcullis slammed shut in her face. She cowered in the doorway watching the falling stones ready to move if one should come near her. To her amazement, the stones began to arrange themselves into stairs leading up and over the wall!  
Suddenly as soon as the rocks started falling, they stopped. Rynn ran from her hiding place and ran up the stairs and onto a circular platform, which started to move upwards as soon as she stepped on it. Above the ceiling had a circular hole in the centre, big enough for her to fit through so she carefully stood in the centre of the platform as it met the ceiling above pushing her through the hole into a new room.

The room was brightly lit by a magnificent crystal domed ceiling very similar to the one in Heron's tomb she visited that morning and in the centre was the huge bell she saw from below. Rynn looked around the place in awe; she had passed the physical tests, now she had to survive the elemental tests within the tower itself.  
Driven on by the thought of Arokh and her brother she climbed the stairs encircling the bell and hit it as hard as she could with the bellhammer. The hammer broke instantly but it had done its job; the room was filled with a loud "dong!" as the bell rang out. Suddenly, the bell fell from its mountings and smashed through the floor below revealing a swirling blue portal.

"Is that supposed to happen?" She asked herself. Shrugging, she decided to leap into the swirling blue mass below her. "Well, here goes, time to get this over with" she remarked and jumped into the portal.

Everything went blue for a moment and her vision went hazy then it was all over; she fell into a freezing pool of water, a stark contrast in temperature to the lava pools she encountered in the physical tests. Shivering, she swam to the edge and through a small doorway into a large cavern partially flooded with water. Two flame knights appeared at the opposite end but disappeared as she swam across the flooded section to fight them.  
"_Strange_" she thought but continued onwards into a man made stone tunnel, which lead down some stairs and into a square room filled with jets of flame coming from the floor. "_The fire test, the first of the elemental tests_" she thought as she looked into the room.

Rynn pulled a nearby lever and the flames all went out enabling her to enter the room. As she half expected, the gate slammed shut behind her locking her in. She could see another locked gate at the other side and four floor switches were on the floor. The room was lit by four large blue glowing crystals fastened to a column in the centre of the room. Two corridors were at the left and right hand sides of the room, with a floor switch at the end of each one. Both had flame jets leading up to the switches which suddenly burst into life.

"Hmm, I wonder how this works?" she said out aloud and began to step on the four switches which seemed to disable the flame jets in the passages for about 30 seconds. Eventually, it dawned on her; she had to disable the jets then run down the corridors pressing the switches at the end before the time ran out.  
"Okay, this isn't that hard" she said and quickly ran over the four switches in turn then running down the left corridor hitting the switch and then repeating the process with the right. As she moved into the centre of the room again, the gate opposite to where she came in opened and the crystals went dark. She quickly ran at the gate ducking to roll under it just as the entire room went up in flames.  
"One down, three more to go" she mumbled.

Meanwhile, Arokh awoke to find himself moving. He looked around with bleary eyes and saw that he was on a ship, heading towards the Succubi lair at the southern end of the archipelago. He was bound to a platform by his feet and neck making him extremely uncomfortable; his neck was aching due to the position he was in. A muzzle was fitted round his mouth clamping his jaws shut and the metallic object felt uncomfortable against his teeth. At the helm of the ship were a couple of wartocks, Arokh wished he could roast them alive but he couldn't. He let out a loud groan and tried to get more comfortable.  
"Shut up" A Wartock yelled from his left who he had not noticed. A sharp pain followed as the Wartock kicked him in his ribs. Arokh didn't bother to try to speak and watched the coastline come nearer.

Back in Rimril's tower, Rynn felt the blow and let out a cry of pain. "Arokh!" she yelled followed by a quiet "what are you up to?"  
She was busy with the next test, air, which was more difficult than the fire test. She would do anything to hear Arokh's voice at that moment. Rynn ran frantically around the room stepping on floor switches desperately trying to figure out the sequence whilst being pursued by miniature tornadoes. Eventually, she stepped on the last switch and the tornadoes died down and the crystals lighting the room went dark. She had survived the second test, two more to go.

Now confident, she ran up the stairs leading from the room and came to a fork in the path, one led on to the third test, earth and the other led to a small room which some armour and a bow could be seen on a pedestal. Rynn's armour was a little worse for wear so she decided to try and get the armour and bow, which would almost certainly be useful against the winged Succubi.

Carefully, she walked into the small room and looked around; it did not seem to be booby-trapped this time. She pulled the lever opening the cage around the pedestal and took the two items, the bow and armour of the Order, once belonging to Rimril himself. The armour was in good condition but the bow was showing signs of age; the string was flimsy and the wood was rotten. However it was a powerful bow and she added it to her collection; it would serve as a backup weapon at least...

Pleased with her progress so far, Rynn went on to the next test feeling that if the others were that easy, this one would be no real challenge. She wondered why no one else had made it into the tower, surely in six centuries there had to be a few have a go heroes?  
As Rynn entered the earth test, it was even simpler than the other two; all she had to do was jump onto various platforms to get to the other side.  
Carefully she jumped onto the first solid looking piece of ground and looked down off the edge; there was nothing below but darkness. A piece of stone fell off the edge and Rynn stopped for a moment to see if she could hear it hit the bottom but she heard nothing. "_Definitely not a good idea to fall off_" she thought.

In a matter of a few minutes she was over to the other side and ready for the final test of lightning which proved more difficult than the others did. As Rynn ran around the room trying to figure out the puzzle, the bolts of lightning that flashed around the room hit her knocking her to the ground. She had used an invulnerability potion the first time she was hit but the blasts still knocked her about. Finally, she stood on the last stone floor switch and the lightning ceased. Heart racing, she ran out of the room and into another large cavern which has a deep pit in the centre. She could see a bridge crossing it and going into another stone structure on the other side.

An eerie feeling came over Rynn as she walked down the dusty passageway leading to the bridge.  
"It's quiet. Too quiet" she muttered to herself and as those fateful words left her lips, about thirty ticks dropped from the ceiling surrounding her. Alarmed, Rynn drew the first sword that came into her hands and began hitting the floor in hope of hitting the things but she was hopelessly outnumbered. Remembering her attack on the goblins earlier, she pulled out a fire crystal and used all of them in quick succession till there was nothing left moving.

She put her hand over her mouth to mask the smoke and smell of fried tick and hurried over the bridge and through the doorway. There, in front of her on a pedestal was the rift crystal.  
"At last!" she exclaimed and ran up to the pedestal noticing the floor switch in front of it. The crystal was surrounded by a transparent barrier, which prevented anyone from grabbing it. Without thinking of the consequences, Rynn stood on the switch but the barrier did not dissolve as she expected rather huge rings of fire shot out from the pedestal burning her legs. She shrieked in pain and jumped over the following two rings; they were not as high as the ones produced by the fire crystals enabling her to jump over them.

Rynn healed and looked around the brightly-lit cathedral like room decorated with ancient artefacts and golden furniture. Two large blue crystals were in high alcoves at either side of the room above the rift crystal. Rynn could notice a pattern on each of the crystal but couldn't understand what they meant.  
Noticing two doorways on either side, she took one and found that it led up to one of the crystals overlooking the rift crystal. A lever was beside her and shrugging, she pulled it but at first nothing appeared to happen. Thinking of nothing else to do, Rynn went back into the room below and looked up to the crystal noticing the image had changed.

"Time for another try" Rynn said to herself drinking an invulnerability potion and stepping on the floor switch. This time, the same miniature tornadoes came out of the pedestal that was in the air test and after a short moment dispersed and disappeared. It suddenly dawned on Rynn what she had to do; she had to survive all four of the elements then she could take the crystal.  
She ran up to the other crystal changing the pattern to a new one and repeated what she had done, this time not using any potions hoping that it would help her; she thought 'cheating' would not be allowed. She repeated the process again with the fourth element and stood by the pedestal as the floor fell away - earth.

With only a few centimetres to stand on, she saw the barrier slowly dissolve and she reached over and grabbed the rift crystal, the floor instantly reappearing and the door on the opposite side of the room opening. Rynn hastily placed the rift crystal in her pocket; she did not want to risk putting it into her backpack should it be damaged or stolen in battle. Taking one last look of the room, she hurried through the now open door and jumped into the awaiting portal.

Rynn landed with a splash in another pool of water. "More water" she mumbled as she climbed out, shivering with the cold. Looking out of the doorway, she saw that she was back in the entrance hall of Rimril's tower. Outside she could see the dark sky; she had been in the tower for a good couple of hours and rushed out back into the islands expecting to see Arokh but he was nowhere to be seen.  
"Arokh!" she yelled but no reply came. "Arokh!" she shouted again, a mild panic beginning to set in.  
"He is not here" a hoarse voice came from nearby. Rynn looked over to where the voice was coming from and saw Rimril, barley alive and cowering by a rock.

"Where did he go?" she asked.  
"He... was... taken. By the Succubi. Overwhelmed us" Rimril struggled.  
"What? Where did they take him?" Rynn asked in dismay. Without Arokh she would have a hard time and it would surely delay her reaching her brother now.  
Rimril raised his head with great difficulty and eventually managed to speak. "I... Don't know. I'd suggest looking in the Succubi lair to the south... If you follow the islands you can reach it in an hour. Go... you are the only one who can keep the flame alive!"  
Rimril gave a groan and collapsed.  
Rynn did not seem to notice and continued to ask questions. "Okay, but what about? Oh, I'm sorry" she said as she suddenly noticed the magi was dead.

Rynn felt sad for a moment but her sadness soon turned to anger.  
"_I guess Ill have to find this place on my own_" she thought as she began to make her way south. She looked up into the sky noticing three of Drakan's four moons lighting up the sky. In the east, the alien world of Sessool, the next planet in the Drakan solar system could be made out just above the horizon.

Meanwhile, back at the Succubi lair, Arokh had been taken off the ship and into the lair to await his fate. 10 wartocks were needed to carry the him and the platform he was fastened to around in the lair.  
"Grrffhhh! I didn't think a dragon could be so heavy!" One complained to his companion.  
"Yeah" the other Wartock replied as they set the platform down next to the docks.  
A couple of Succubi flew into the room followed by Queen Shilla who flew up to Arokh and landed before him.  
"My god, what a magnificent prize" she shrieked. She looked at the dragon in the eyes and saw the uncertainty and fear within them.  
"Leave me alone with the dragon" she commanded to the Wartocks and the Succubi behind. One nodded and they all left the room.

The fat, ugly queen of the Succubi stared lovingly at the dragon, her head cocked to one side. "Here, let me take this off for you my sweet" she said softly, undoing the muzzle around his mouth. She slowly pulled it away and wiped the saliva off the part that had been in the dragon's mouth and licked her fingers. "Hmm, tastes so sweet" she continued licking the remaining saliva off the muzzle, her face drawn into an expression of overwhelming pleasure.  
Shilla began to walk around the dragon stroking his body as she went.  
"So handsome, so powerful... So _sexy_. It would be such a waste" she murmured as she reached his rear. Arokh's head followed round to see what she was doing. He dared not to try and kill her, not whilst he was defenceless.

"I wonder what you would be like when making love? Hmm, I bet you're fantastic" she exclaimed as she crawled underneath to stroke his crotch. She then placed her head between his rear legs and breathed in deeply letting out a low moan of exctasy pausing to slowly lick the base of his tail. Arokh twitched as he felt himself becoming sexually aroused. This was too much for the dragon to bear.

"My god, that's impressive. You _are_ a big man aren't you? Can I…." Shilla asked hoping for an answer but Arokh interrupted her mid sentence as he finally lost his temper. "Get your hands off me you dirty bitch!" he exploded in a fit of rage. Shilla immediately walked round to his side away from the reach of his mouth. "Aww, you don't like that? Oh go on, I'm the last female you will encounter."  
"What? You must be joking! Are you desperate or something?" Arokh snapped glaring at the queen with scorn and disgust.  
Shilla frowned and replied "Surely you know of the Succubi and their ability to seduce any male creature?"  
Arokh ignored her answer and stared at the ground. "Why have you brought me here?" he asked quietly.  
"Hah, I thought you would figure that one out. I know that your bonded will come and rescue you and she will have the rift crystal with her." Shilla explained.

"Assuming she has it?" Arokh pointed out.  
"Oh she has it alright otherwise you would be stone my sweet Arokh" the Succubi queen replied.  
"How do you know my name?" Arokh demanded surprised that this ugly hideous creature would know his name. He didn't remember her name from the Dark Wars and it was unlikely that she had lived since then.  
"Oops, I've already said too much. Let me just say that our master has great plans for you which does not involve your bonded" she scowled and turned to walk away. She stopped and began to walk back round to the dragon's side. "Are you sure? I'm good you know" she whispered into his ear.

"If you get too close again, Ill bite your head off. Get lost" he snarled turning his head away the best he could.  
"Temper, temper. If you change your mind, let me know" she said as she kissed his neck.

Arokh watched as she flew up and out of the room leaving him alone to ponder his fate. He felt miserable and uncertain of his future and he was becoming worried that Rynn will fail him. He shuddered with disgust as he thought of the prospect of him making love with that _thing_ and tried to make himself as comfortable as possible.

Queen Shilla walked back into her throneroom a short distance from the docks and was greeted by her bodyguard who stood next to the throne like a steel clad statue, the Mournblade sword at his side.  
"Everything is going to plan" She barked at him. "See that you instruct our forces in the islands to kill that damn Rynn. I want that rift crystal now!"  
The knight gave a puzzled expression pausing for a moment. "But, my Queen, wouldn't Arokh be turned to stone if the woman is killed?"  
Shilla gazed at her bodyguard thoughtfully and eventually replied "You are correct. Accidents do happen, the dragon is only a bonus gift. I'm sure Navaros will understand. Furthermore, he wasn't much fun; he didn't want to play."  
The Ebon knight bowed and left to inform the queen's messengers, the same two who had greeted Rynn and Arokh the first time they came to the islands.

Shilla planted herself down on her throne and pressed a button on one armrest. There was a low humming noise as a small grimstone screen came down from the roof and swivelled round to face her. An image flickered into life on the screen showing a large meeting hall with a small rift gate in the centre surrounded by a low wall. The gate was no bigger than a human's body and a ghostly bubbling noise emanated from the purple swirling mass.  
"We have the dragon my lord" Queen Shilla said confidently at the screen.  
A loud inhuman voice came from inside the rift. "Excellent work. And what about a body for me to inhabit?" The voice questioned.  
"I have selected a few young boys from villages around the lands. I will leave it up to you to decide which one you want. Everything is going to plan, don't you worry."  
"I am not worried," The voice shouted in anger. "You have wasted a lot of time Shilla due to the incompetence of your Succubi. I want the dragon and the boys bringing to me as soon as possible."  
"Yes my lord" Shilla answered and turned off the screen. She wanted to wait for Rynn first before delivering Arokh and the ten boys but she couldn't wait too long.

"Ah, you are back" she grated at her Ebon knight. "We have new plans. I want to wait a couple of hours to see if we can capture or kill Rynn. If not, we must take the human samples and the dragon to Navaros or he will have both our heads. Then we can worry about Rynn and the rift crystal."  
The knight nodded and grinned. "Wouldn't Rynn be killed anyway once our lord has done with Arokh?"  
Shilla smiled as she thought of Arokh's destiny. "Yes, you are correct. It will be one nuisance out of the way. For now, we wait."

A Succubi crashed to the floor as Rynn shot the final deathblow. Out of the corner of her eye, Rynn saw a lone bat dragon flying across in front of her. She swivelled round to take a shot from her bow but Rynn realised that the dragon had not seen her.  
"Its best not to provoke an attack" she said quietly to herself.  
The path ahead seemed clear but she could hear goblin voices below. Cautiously, she peered over the ledge to see a goblin encampment below; several goblins were apparently dancing around a campfire. Another two stood nearby, their dart guns ready.

Rynn equipped her bow with magic arrows and squinted down the arrow shaft so it was in line with one of the snipers and let it go. The arrow went streaming to its target in a show of yellow and blue light knocking the goblin to the ground. The dancing stopped and everyone looked in her direction. There was frantic scurrying from below and shortly afterwards, a barrage of arrows came her way, some ice, some fire and some poison.  
"Bad idea" she said under her breath and ran down the path as fast as she could but one of the fire arrows caught her in the side piercing the armour. Rynn yelped at the burning pain and pulled the arrow out throwing it to the floor as it started to burn her hand. She could not stop now to drink a health potion; she had to get out of there.

Grimacing with the pain, she stumbled and fell as another barrage of arrows followed. She rolled out of the way but went rolling down the steep slope landing right in the encampment on her back looking at the stars. She tried to get to her feet but another arrow hit her in the leg and another goblin came up to stab her with its bayonet. Rynn reached for her sword and sliced the creature's arm off, it running away in pain, blood gushing from the stump.

Bleeding heavily, she struggled to her feet and quickly looked around. Three goblins were standing next to a couple of explosive barrels behind her and another one was getting ready to fire in front of her. She stared at the flaming arrowhead and as soon as she saw the goblin's finger hit the trigger, she dived to one side. The arrow whizzed past her head and embedded itself in one of the barrels, which exploded in a spectacular display of pyrotechnics turning the nearby goblins into little meaty chunks.

The goblin who had attacked looked on horrified, Rynn took advantage of the situation and threw her short sword at the amphibious creature knocking it unconscious. She struggled over and retrieved her sword jumping into the air to avoid another attack and swiping down with her sword neatly lopping the goblin's head off. Only one more remained which wisely fled for its life and Rynn leant against a grassy mound and drank a health potion. Now, the wound in her leg healed, she ran after the fleeing goblin, which hopped along shouting for assistance. Rynn followed and eventually caught up with it slaying it with deadly accuracy before any reinforcements could be alerted.

Rynn did not even notice the giant on the path ahead as she was too busy with the goblin. An explosive barrel smashed into the rocks on her left startling her with the thunderous explosion.  
"Oh crap" she mumbled and ran back down the path to take cover behind a rock. She sat there until the giant had exhausted his supply of things to throw at her and ran out to face the giant who was now advancing quickly towards her.

Knowing that it was impossible to take one on in melee combat, she began firing arrows wildly with her speed bow, the giant pausing with each hit but still advancing determined to make a kill. When he got too close for comfort, Rynn switched to the lightning axe she found and began to circle the creature hitting its legs simultaneously letting off one of the lightning charges. The Giant roared in pain and desperately tried to pick Rynn up in its hand so he could throw her to her death but she was too quick for him. Eventually, Rynn dealt the final blow, the creature groaning and toppling over. Rynn quickly ducked and rolled out of the way as the creature crashed down to where she had just been standing.

"_Phew, that was a hard fight"_ she thought wiping the sweat from her brow. All she could hear now was silence apart from the crickets and other insects that populated the land. The path beyond the giant led back down to the beach and Rynn walked carefully along the soft sand. She suddenly noticed a locked gate closing off a small cave; a bow could just be seen inside. Remembering some ruins she had seen from above, she decided to backtrack along the beach to where she had saw them. As she neared, there was a grinding noise and a square hole opened up in the ground and slowly a coffin rose vertically out of it.

Rynn stood there mystified and pointed her bow at the coffin. Nothing seemed to happen for a while then all of a sudden, the coffin lid blew off hitting the ground with a loud crash as it shattered into several pieces. A mummy ghost like creature came floating out flew over towards Rynn. Its body consisted of blood stained bandages wrapped round a rotting corpse, its bones visible amongst the putrid flesh and the sight of it made the young woman's heartbeat to race with fear.  
"What the hell?" Rynn said out aloud. She looked at the creature's skull 'face' and a cold shiver went down her spine, her heartbeat now a prominent thump, thump, thump in her chest; it was the most frightening thing she had seen. She turned to run but she was frozen with fear, then, the creature let out a ghostly scream and unleashed a couple of green floating skulls which homed in on Rynn hitting her. She could feel her life force being drained away.

Her fear had subsided a little and she now was able to fight; she fired an arrow at the ghost and it disappeared with a scream of agony. Rynn could still feel her heart almost pounding out of her chest but yet she now felt somewhat relived. But the creature was not dead; it came back. Drinking another health elixir, she dodged the green skulls and ran at the ghost attacking it with her sword. Again it disappeared and came back, Rynn hitting it again. She was absolutely terrified and screamed "Arokh!" in vain hoping that he would hear her but he didn't. The ghost made another appearance and Rynn lunged at it taking one hit from the floating skulls, but this time, it gave an agonising scream and exploded.

Rynn's legs were like jelly and she collapsed to the floor to rest, eyes darting all over the place should the ghost come back but it didn't. She wondered if it was a hallucination as drinking too many health potions did have side effects and long-term liver damage but the wounds on her body proved the ghost's reality. She shook her head and dismissed the idea. She would have to be more careful to avoid injury so that she would not have to drink more of the red healing liquid. After a short moment, she examined the coffin and saw that there was a key inside but it was difficult to reach. She carefully lined herself up with the coffin behind her and did a backward flip so she was standing on the top of it and reached down to take the key.  
"I wonder what this is for?" she mumbled as she jumped down and returned to the locked gate.

The locked cave contained a dragonstrife bow; a magical bow that had heat sensing capabilities, usually used for taking down dragons but it would also be useful against the Succubi. Unfortunately, it only had 50 arrows so she had to use them sparingly but now she had a better chance of reaching the lair alive. A weapon like the dragonstrife bow was a weapon not easily come by especially in the desolate islands. It was almost as if the gods of Drakan were in her favour, placing the weapon there for her to discover but Rynn just put it down to sheer luck. She just hoped that she would be lucky enough to reach Arokh before he or her was harmed.

**Chapter Nine: A little too late?  
**  
At last, Rynn reached the mainland to the south. It was relatively quiet giving the entrance to the Succubi lair was only a couple of hundred meters away. Squatting down behind a grassy mound, the young warrior could see a few Succubi flittering around the entrance and a ship docked nearby stacked with crates of grimstone fresh from the mines. She paused for a moment thinking of her brother and the other young boys that had seemingly been taken into the Succubi lair. She had no knowledge of the beings other than what Arokh had told her. Whatever they intended to do to him could not be good and Rynn felt the urge to find him more and more.

Rynn gathered her weapons together and carefully made her way to the entrance using the cover of darkness and an invisibility potion to keep herself hidden from the odd goblin and the war giant that patrolled the docks. The three Succubi however saw her the moment the potion wore off and immediately fled into the lair in an apparent panic. They knew she was coming.

Queen Shilla shouted in anger at her Wartock and Goblin allies incompetence, taking it out on her two messengers.  
"What do you mean? She is actually parading through my home as we speak?" Shilla screamed at the two Succubi, her eyes lit up with anger.  
One mumbled "yes, she managed to get past the war giant" hanging her head trying not to make eye contact with the queen.  
"Oh great. Pure incompetence. Navaros will get to hear of this failure and all that are responsible will be dealt with severely. I suggest you send our flame knights to deal with her and warn anyone left in the lair. I will go and make preparations to transport Arokh and the humans to Navaros." Shilla continued her voice still shrill with anger.

She began to head out of the door and turned to face her bodyguard, the Ebon knight. "I want you to stay. Once you deal with Rynn, get yourself on the boat carrying the grimstone and come and find me in the meeting hall where we have opened the rift. The boat will follow shortly after the transport taking Arokh and the human samples; there will not be another one. Do not miss it."  
The knight nodded and replied "as you wish my queen" his voice sounding hollow within the steel clad suit.

Meanwhile, Rynn had made it past the entrance hall of the lair and was about to enter the main antechamber that contained the feeding and sleeping quarters.  
She swallowed hard as she walked up the short corridor. The walls seemed to be alive, several pulsating balls of a green flesh like substance expanded and contracted like giant infected spots. The place had a foul smell in the air, which smelt of rotting flesh; she noticed a couple of decomposed human bodies nailed to the pulsating walls. Almost retching with the smell, Rynn hurried through to the main chamber and looked around the alien looking cave. A lone Succubi descended down to meet her.

"No, wait!" she yelled when she saw the human reaching for her bow.  
Rynn cautiously lowered her weapon and eyed the winged creature with suspicion.  
"You are the dragonrider, yes?" she questioned.  
"I might me" Rynn answered dryly, as she put her bow away.  
The Succubi continued; she seemed more relaxed now that an arrow wasn't pointing in her face. "Well, I can help you. You see Queen Shilla has banished me from the baths for reasons I'd rather not say. I disagree with what they are planning."  
Rynn stepped forward, closer to the winged being in interest. At last somebody who might be able to answer some questions. "Never mind that, what about my brother? He is one of the few young boys that may have been brought through here?"

The Succubi smiled. "Listen, Queen Shilla and the others have been communicating with a spirit called Navaros, once a warrior of the Dark Union I believe. He cannot escape from the rift as he is not a mortal form and they seek for a body for him to inhabit so he can leave the rift."  
Rynn looked aghast as it suddenly became clear. "My brother" she cried. "I have to get there!"  
The Succubi came closer; Rynn could see her pale blue eyes. "Maybe it is your brother who is chosen, maybe not. I must tell you one more thing though. They plan to bring Navaros back to defeat the Desert Lords but Navaros has plans of his own unknown to Shilla. Bringing him back will only make things worse and both our and your species will be obliterated from this world."

"How do you know that?" Rynn questioned.  
"I have spies. Some of us secretly oppose Shilla" the creature answered.  
Rynn didn't bother to ask further questions about Navaros or the Desert Lords; she was only interested in her brother. Other matters like that would come second.  
"I'm not interested in petty political matters. Can you help me find my brother?" Rynn asked, her voice almost begging.  
The succubi looked at her thoughtfully wondering whether to help or not, deciding what would be the best thing to do. Eventually she gave her answer. "I can show you but some may ask questions when they see you. Leave the talking to me but I will have to leave you to go on alone when you reach the Queen's throneroom. She has a bodyguard who will need disposing of."  
Rynn was overjoyed but there was doubt in her mind that the Succubi might lead her into a trap. She accepted but was highly alert should her doubts prove to be true.  
"Lead the way then" she eventually said hand firmly on her bow should anything go wrong.

The Succubi lead her through the twisting tunnels and chambers filled with the pulsating walls deeper into the lair. The sleeping quarters were akin to a bee hive; hundreds of small holes in the rock leading up and down as far as the eye could see. Occasional floating platforms rose up and down carrying food and other supplies. Bridges through these areas formed the interconnecting paths and tunnels that made up the lair.  
Suddenly she stopped outside a jail cell and went inside returning with some chains taken from a long dead unfortunate victim.  
"Put these around your arms and waist" she suggested.  
Rynn stepped back uneasily. "Why?" she asked suspiciously.  
The Succubi laughed and smiled again. "There is no need for alarm. You are my prisoner. Once we get near the throneroom, Ill let you go."  
"Oh I see now," Rynn said realising that her new companion was going to get her past the flame knight guards.

Somewhat reluctantly, Rynn put on the chains and began to follow the Succubi down a long tunnel, thankfully having rock walls rather than the 'living' walls until a locked door blocked their progress. The door was flanked by a couple of flame knights who looked formidable in their steel armour and dual flame swords.  
"Don't worry, I outrank them" she whispered to Rynn who looked quite shocked at her present condition. She swallowed and nodded in acknowledgement.  
"What is your purpose here?" One bellowed.  
"I have Rynn. Shilla wants to see her immediately," the Succubi said.  
The knight did not reply but calmly unlocked the door and beckoned for them to go through.  
"Move it!" the Succubi, shouted to her prisoner.  
Together, they walked through the door, the knight closing it behind them. The tunnel ahead was empty.

"Shilla has already left for the volcano taking Arokh and the young boys with her. There is another ship in 10 minutes which will follow the others; it will lead you to them." The Succubi noted as they reached the end of the tunnel. Two more tunnels were on either side.  
"I must leave you here. The tunnel to the left goes to the throneroom, the other leads to the docks. Good luck and whatever you do don't take on Shilla's bodyguard hand to hand. Use your arrows" she continued undoing Rynn's chains.

"Thank you" Rynn mumbled and turned to ask the Succubi what the pulsating walls were made of but she had gone, seemingly into thin air.

Rynn could not believe her luck but suddenly a feeling of dread came over her as she thought of the possibility that the Succubi had taken the rift crystal. She gulped and reached into her pocket for and sighed with relief when it was still there.  
"Thank god for that" she mumbled and began to make her way into the throneroom.  
"Who goes there?" a steel clad knight shouted, the Mournblade sword at his side.  
Rynn did not answer and pressed herself against the wall when she saw him coming towards her.  
"It's now or never" she muttered as she reached for the dragonstrife bow, which had more arrows than expected due to her help through the lair. Desperately, she pulled the bow and released the homing arrow which hit the Ebon knight in the chest knocking him back. Again and again Rynn continued to fire arrows, the knight responding by throwing lightning spears at her. Only one hit her but it did not do much damage.

The knight, confident that he would get a kill ran up to the human but she suddenly whipped out a deadly looking mace and embedded it into his face. The knight gave a groan and toppled over, his armour crashing onto the floor with an alarming clatter. Rynn bent down and picked up his weapon and straightaway she realised it was special.  
The blade was long and felt very light in her hands and gave off low screams as she swung it through the air.  
"This is an awesome weapon" She exclaimed as she practised with it for a while eventually making a decision to throw away an axe and a long sword that was weighing her down.  
She looked up and saw the throne ahead of her; the room was empty otherwise. Running up to the bare rock throne, she pressed the button on the armrest with curiosity.

A humming sound alarmed Rynn and she drew the Mournblade ready to attack but nothing came to challenge her. She watched in amazement as a small screen came to rest in front of her flickering into life showing a boat leaving with Arokh onboard.  
"Arokh!" she shouted in despair and ran out of the throneroom towards the docks. By her timing, she had roughly 5 minutes to get to that ship or her brother may be lost forever.

Arokh observed the queen with suspicious eyes. He had been muzzled again and he watched the queen closely to see if she would have another attempt at fondling him. He shuddered with the thought but the queen seemed to ignore him and flew above the ship barking orders at the crew. Arokh could smell sulphur in the air and he suddenly realised that the ship was heading nearer and nearer to an erupting volcano on the mainland. The waves gently rocked the wooden boat from side to side adding to the nausea and dread that the dragon felt. He wanted to ask why they were heading to such a dangerous place but he couldn't. All he could do was wait.

Back in the Succubi Lair behind him, Rynn stopped horrified as another war giant blocked her way. He looked identical to Tutol and was as every bit deadly. Rynn quickly ran back into the safety of the tunnel where the giant could not follow and pondered her situation. She had one invisibility potion left and there was no time to fight, she had to get onto that ship.  
Not knowing how far away the docks were, Rynn took the risk and drank the potion running past the giant towards another tunnel entrance. She ran faster as the giant stomped about; he could not see her but he could hear her. He tried to kill her by stamping on the ground making Rynn stumble a few times as she ran.

Rynn noticed one flaw of the invisibility potions; her feet were making nice footprints as she ran in the sand enabling the giant to see where she was. The giant was not very intelligent but she figured that it wouldn't be long before he realised her trickery.  
This was shortly confirmed as loud thunderous footsteps followed closely, Rynn running faster in fear of her life. Finally, she dived into the tunnel, the giant crashing into the rocks behind.  
She did not stop either; the potion would not last much longer.

Summoning up all of her strength, Rynn ran past another giant and past a group of Grull and dived onto the ship as it left the docks. She looked back and saw a Grull being hurled through the air heading in her direction but it splashed into the sea harmlessly. The giant had seen her as she dived onto the ship, the potion wearing off at the same moment.  
As the boat left, Rynn looked back at the immense structure of the lair and then carefully hid under a pile of Grull costumes before anyone else saw her.

The winds that rocked the boat got stronger and stronger, Rynn felt that a storm was coming. She had hidden under the clothes, thankfully clean and washed for nearly an hour and she was becoming restless.  
"_I wonder how long this will take_" she wondered peeking out from under the clothes to get some idea of where she was.

There was no one on deck, this boat was different; the bridge was below decks rather than the traditional at the helm like the others. She looked up at the two masts and sails arranged like dragon's wings that moved about in the wind, the wood creaking with every move. The pitch black night sky was starting to give way to daylight on the horizon and Rynn could make out another two ships a few miles ahead of her. Beyond the ships, land could be made out where a volcano was erupting spewing its deadly lava over the land. Somehow, she had a sinister feeling that it was her destination.

**Chapter Ten: Volcano of death  
**  
The boat began to head for a sea level cave, one of a few that lined the mainland coast, but this one was notably larger than the others. Suddenly, she heard Grull voices and she immediately dived under the clothes to take cover. Carefully parting the tunics so she could see, the Grull began to take down the sails and disappeared below decks again. The other two ships had docked about half an hour before her ship arrived and she was becoming increasingly worried about her brother's safety.

There was a splash as several pairs of oars protruded from the ship and it slowly began to head into the cave. Rynn noted the strong smell of sulphur and the immense heat; some parts of the cave walls were actually glowing a deep red and where they met the sea, steam rose off the water flooding the cave with an eerie fog.

Finally, the boat penetrated the fog and came to a stop by a long wooden pier in an underground cavern. She noticed that there were a large number of Grull and boxes by the docks and the other two boats were nearby. She could see Arokh fastened to a platform by the dockside looking very miserable. Upon hearing voices, Rynn dived off the boat and into the water, which was very hot. Quickly, Rynn swam to the edge and hid behind some boxes out of view. A Grull turned round when he heard her footsteps but turned away when he saw nothing.

Out of nowhere, a loud voice echoed through the cavern. "Attention, Attention. Could all members of the Dark Union, living and undead please report to the meeting hall immediately. Failure to do so will result in the death penalty. All..."  
Rynn could not understand the last words but she thought nothing of it, wanting to reach Arokh and her brother as soon as possible. To her relief, the Grull started to leave the cavern and a few minutes later there was silence. Now was the time to free Arokh and she carefully crept up to him cautious of any Grull that may have stayed behind.

"Rynn!" Arokh exclaimed, his voice muffled due to the muzzle around his mouth.  
"Shh. Don't shout. Here, let me take this off for you" Rynn whispered to her companion, relieved and overjoyed to see him.  
Rynn discarded the muzzle and knelt down before the dragon.  
"You okay?" she asked looking up into his eyes.  
Arokh gave a sad smile. "I would be if I could move."  
Rynn frowned. "Well, I'd better get you out of there pal before they come back."  
Arokh gave a snort. "If only it was so simple. This is a rune cage and cannot be opened without the key and that bitch, Shilla has it."  
"Shilla?" she questioned. The Dragon's jaws curved into another smile. "You know, the Succubi queen?" he answered. Rynn's heart sank when it dawned on her; she hadn't really taken much notice of what Rimril said to Arokh but she quickly remembered what was said about the queen. She could not go on without Arokh and she didn't want anything to happen to him. She knew it meant her getting the key from Shilla and that would not be easy especially without Arokh to help her.

"Well, I'd better get it. I'm not looking forward to it" Rynn mumbled.  
"I have every confidence in you" the dragon rumbled, his voice now quieter, a look of worry and shame in his eyes.  
"You sure you are okay? You look like you want to tell me something." Rynn asked again.  
Arokh shook his head then nodded slowly. "Just kill that bitch for now. She... er.. how can I put this... She tried to seduce me and was almost successful; she started stroking and licking my hind quarters, it was very hard to control my emotions." He continued hanging his head lower in shame.  
Rynn looked horrified.  
"You didn't? Did you?" she asked, ashamed that her bonded would stoop so low. Even though there were the obvious differences between the human and the dragon, Arokh was _hers_ and she suddenly felt very angry at Shilla's actions.

Arokh saw the look on her face and was equally horrified that his friend would even believed he would do such a thing.  
"Of course not, I said she was _almost_ successful. What do you think I am? Anyway, if I had have done, they could have easily used my, ahem, love juice to take a genetic sample. In other words, to make a clone of me."

"Oh, right. I see" Rynn said standing up. "Well, wish me luck, I think I'm going to need it" she continued patting the dragon on the nose.  
The dragon smiled and whispered "Good luck" as she began to head out of the cavern leaving the same way the Grull did.

Rynn followed the tunnel through avoiding the searing heat of its edges, which, in some parts glowed a dull red with heat of the lava and magma under the surface. Everyone had gone to the meeting hall so she was unchallenged, she had to run as her feet were becoming very warm through the hot ground; the thin soles of her boots offering little protection.

The tunnel opened up revealing a long canyon flooded with lava, several streams came from the fissures and cracks in the rocks above leaving snaking glowing red trails that hissed and crackled as they went. The fumes and heat were almost unbearable.  
Ahead, a stone bridge led over to a cave entrance in a central mound of rock. Hanging baskets full of strange looking flowers hung from the rocks which had been carved into horn shapes, decorated with symbols unknown to the human.  
It was not this that made Rynn turn and run; at the other side of the bridge was the biggest scavenger she had seen and it came leaping over at frightening speed. Summoning up courage to fight rather than run, Rynn used her speed bow to kill the creature dead before it even reached her; it wasn't particularly hard to kill despite its size.

"So much for the guard" she mumbled as she kicked aside one of the creature's limbs so she could pass. The fumes from the lava below become more and more overpowering and Rynn ran across the bridge into the cave in a desperate attempt to avoid them. As she walked into the cave, she could hear several voices below. Carefully, she hid behind a large ornamental vase and overlooked the meeting below.  
Two paths led down to the cave floor, which in the centre lay a small rift gate, unfortunately only big enough for the passage of a human. Rynn leaned closer to overhear the conversation.

"Where is that rift crystal?" An angry, impatient voice boomed from the rift.  
The fat queen of the Succubi flew around the cave in a trance, clearly enjoying the moment. "My lord of the Rift, the dragon's rider, Rynn is on her way here now, our spies have confirmed this. All we have to do is wait until she gets here then the rift crystal will be.."  
"Mine!" the voice cut her short.  
"You have wasted lots of time. Where are your allies you promised?" the voice boomed.  
"They have not turned up, I suspect some have turned traitor" Shilla explained hoping her explanation would appease the lord of the rift.  
"You better have a body ready, I want to escape from this place by sunrise" the voice said angrily.

Queen Shilla beckoned to a couple of death magi who brought a sedated Delon forward. He was still dressed in the clothes he was captured in.  
"Delon!" Rynn shouted from above. The two death magi looked identical to the ghost like creature she had encountered in the islands; at least now she knew the correct name for them. Shilla looked up but did not see her. Fortunately, she turned back to the rift gate thinking she was mistaken she had heard Rynn's voice. "We have this young boy" she waved to Delon.  
"Excellent, bring him here" the voice boomed.

The two death magi dragged Delon forwards and before Rynn could do anything dragged him into the rift gate and was gone. She could not run down and fight, she would be hopelessly outnumbered and she did not want to risk going into the rift without Arokh.  
She continued to watch as the Wartocks, Grull, Magi and Succubi left the meeting hall through doorways around its perimeter. Desperately thinking of her brother and how she could stop them, Rynn faltered and thought of her bonded trapped on that platform. He was all she needed now.

To her relief, Shilla flew up and past her, out of the cave back towards Arokh. Rynn had not been seen and quickly gave chase, she was sure Shilla had mentioned that Arokh was to be sacrificed to Navaros.  
"Hey, you, give me that key now!" she shouted once they were out on the bridge.

Shilla turned around, surprised to hear Rynn's voice. "Hah, not likely" she laughed and ignored her continuing back across the bridge.  
"Oh no you don't" Rynn yelled and fired a couple of arrows from the dragonstrife bow hitting Shilla confirmed by a couple of grunts as they penetrated her skin.  
"Its a fight you want is it? Very well then" Shilla warned and flew over to Rynn who was wondering what the queen's attacks were. She wasn't carrying any weapons nor seemed to possess magic. Rynn soon found out however as Shilla went into a dive flipping over and breaking wind onto Rynn's head.

Surprised, coughing and spluttering with the obnoxious stench, Rynn retaliated but this time Shilla broke wind covering her in foul smelling dung.  
"Yuck!" Rynn howled in disgust attacking again. Shilla's attacks continued until Rynn was almost unconscious with the poisonous fumes emitted from the foul smelling dung. She finally let one more arrow go and the hideous creature fell to the bridge, dead almost toppling off into the lava below. Rynn took the key from the body and drank a health elixir. Shortly afterwards. A large thunderous roar sounded and she looked up to see a lava rune appearing above Shilla's body; very similar to the ones produced upon an Elder Breed dragon's death. She did indeed possess magic Rynn thought and quickly returned to Arokh before anyone else did.

"What happened to you?" Arokh asked as Rynn unlocked the rune cage.  
"Trust me, you don't want to know" Rynn said angrily, bending down to undo the clamps around his feet which where holding him down. She was grateful the dragon's feet were not nailed to the platform, it certainly would have been painful removing them.

Arokh smiled and stretched as he stepped off the platform. "Ohh, my neck is stiff." His nose started to twitch. "Ugh, you stink! Get in that water and wipe whatever that is off you. You are not climbing on my back smelling like that!" The dragon objected noticing that her upper body was covered in a brown coloured substance.  
Rynn did want to smell like a latrine herself so she walked into the hot water with Arokh following. He stopped by the waterside and observed her with his glittering red eyes.

Rynn started to undress and saw Arokh looking at her. "Turn around, I'm sure you don't want to see me naked" she objected wanting a little privacy for a moment.  
Arokh nodded and turned himself through 180 degrees. "Humans. Always worrying about clothes; I don't see what the big deal is, you have no complaints about me being naked. Tell me when you are done" he said, turning his head slightly so he could get a quick glimpse. Rynn noticed smiling to herself and then began to wash her hair.  
"That's because you are different, Arokh. Animals do not wear clothes; I thought that was obvious." She mumbled as she dipped her head into the water. Arokh grinned to himself and sat down staring at the platform he was attached to remembering his ordeal.

"Okay, you can look now" Rynn said as she waded through the hot water.  
Arokh turned round to see her fully dressed, surprised to see that she had managed to find a change of clothes. "I can't stay in that water for too long" she continued climbing onto the dragon's back.  
"That's better, you don't smell as bad now" Arokh grumbled when she had settled into place.  
"What do you mean... As bad?" Rynn objected.  
"Uh, nothing" Arokh answered with a smile. Rynn could not see the dragon's face whilst mounted but she guessed he was smiling.

"Okay, Arokh. I need to tell you what I found. We must hurry; my brother got taken into some sort of hole in the ground. They are planning to use him so that the lord of the rift can escape - transfer his spirit into Delon's body or something, I don't understand" Rynn said hastily.  
Arokh stood still for a moment in slight shock. "Navaros!" He spat in disgust. "I had a bad feeling this would happen. If your brother has been taken into the rift, we must hurry and find that Runeblade before its too late!"  
Rynn's heart began to race. "So that is what that hole was for. Arokh we have to go now!" She demanded, feeling that her brother's life was now seriously in danger.

Arokh did not need to be told twice and ran through the tunnels towards the exit. "By the way, Arokh. Do you know what happened to the other boys that were captured?" Rynn asked, remembering that it was not just her brother that had been taken away that fateful night.  
Arokh snarled and then spoke on a quieter voice. "I knew you would ask that." He stopped to take a deep breath. "They were executed."  
"What!" Rynn shouted, her voice filled with anger and sadness that someone would kill such young defenceless people.  
"Who killed them?" She asked again, her anger growing. She wanted to know so she could bear it in mind when killing the ones responsible.  
"Well, Queen Shilla ordered their deaths but it was the Ebon Knights that carried out the executions."  
Rynn's lips started to quiver as she fought to hold back the tears. "Just kill them as painfully as possible" she said to the dragon, knowing that it would probably be him that killed them, Rynn did not stand much of a chance against an Ebon Knight.

They burst out into the semi darkness of dawn, Arokh flying up to absorb the lava rune then quickly despatching a pair of ice bats that came to attack. He hovered in the air scanning the valley for any familiar sights.  
"I do not recognise where I am but the main entrance to the rift should be along this valley. We must find the Runeblade first though or we will not be able to enter." Arokh noted, coughing violently with the volcanic fumes. "We must hurry, this place is very hostile."  
"You're not kidding" Rynn mumbled.

Suddenly Rynn had a strange feeling - like if she missed something. She quickly scanned through her memories, and realised there was some sort of passage in the meeting room...  
"Arokh, land here. I must go back. There was some passage in the meeting room - and if all the evils gather somewhere, their weapons and armour also gather there," Rynn said.  
"Oh well. But hurry up and be careful. We can't loose so near to our goal" Arokh replied, and landed. Rynn quickly got off from the dragon, and ran back into the meeting room. She could see the tunnel she forgot to check. Heading into it, she only saw a passage leading somewhere. She slowly crept through it, trying to stay cautious as traps might be present and reached the other side. The sight almost froze the blood in her veins, a long cavern with two giant blades spinning in it. She realised this was the only way to the other side though, and this did not make her feel happier. Luckily, the mechanism, which was moving the blades, wasn't a complex one, so she could time her jump to the first blade easily. She was just standing on the blade, smiling at her success, but the blade suddenly began to move, and she nearly fell down into the lava. "_Grab something_" she reminded herself, and grabbed a rope which was holding the spinning blade. When the blade stopped again, ready for another cycle, she jumped onto the second one, and from there onto the stiff rocks. She immediately realised how much she liked still ground. Since she saw nothing of importance when looking around, she decided to move on.

As she was walking downwards in a passage, she suddenly heard a strange clinking sound. "_Flame Knight_" she suddenly realised. She quickly jumped forward, and thrust her sword towards the knight's chest. The blade did no damage to the foe though, as it only caught the steel armour, clashing away. The knight reacted slow, but skilfully: he slashed towards Rynn with both of his blades. Rynn quickly rolled aside, and launched another attack with her sword at the knight, this time aiming between the helmet and the body armour. She succeeded, and the hit instantly killed the unlucky creature. She quickly picked up the potion, which the knight carried, and ran on, energised by her victory.

She just stepped into the next room, when she realised things weren't going so good as she thought. The room was full of knights, who quickly realised that her head meant their sure promotion. Rynn held her blade in front of her defensively, and soon three blades smashed into the sword, making no real damage. Realising this fight is hopeless this way, Rynn jumped aside, and dashed into a passage she just noticed. Meanwhile, a knight accidentally hit another, who immediately retailed to the attack he suffered. The two knights began to fight with each other, and this took the attention of the others for a little while. Using this small gap, Rynn quickly sneaked onwards in the passage, and soon left the battling knights behind. As she left the passage, she noticed a ledge, which was above a great height. A spear landed into the rock wall beside her, and looking up, she saw a knight standing on the ledge above. Wondering how could have she missed the large being, she took her bow, and fired an arrow at the knight. This shot had an unexpected effect: the knight lost his stability, and fell down. Trying not to get afraid of the height below her feet, she jumped onto the ledge, then onto another below that. Looking around she spotted a weird looking building of some description. Moving into it, she noticed strange looking armour on some sort of pedestal. Getting closer, she saw that the armour looked like it was made of scale and upon further inspection, decided it definitely had the same scales, which Arokh had.

"Dragon armour, hmm" she said to herself. "A strange way to use those poor beings."  
However, she knew she would still make a better use of it than a knight would, so she quickly put it on. She was surprised by the lightness of the armour; and considering the amount of damage Arokh could take; she had no doubts about its capability to help protect her from harm in melee combat.

Getting out of the building, she moved back on the ledge. The other ledge being out of reach, and having no other way to go, she had to go through a door here. After walking a bit, she reached a small room. She was a bit disappointed to find it empty - she expected to find more than armour. However, she was shocked to see four death magi rising from the ground.  
"Come you bastards" she shouted, and thrust her sword at the magi, who quickly vanished. The second was unlucky, as he dodged the wrong direction and the same blade that hit the first smashed through him in the next moment. The third and the fourth magi had time to react though, and began to conjure their devastating spells. Rynn rolled left to avoid the green projectiles heading towards her, and then she jumped at the magi. A magi tried to engage her in close quarter fight - which was a bad idea, but the magi only realised this moments later. The fourth magi decided to not continue the obviously lost battle, and fled through the door, which through Rynn came through. Rynn sighed. At least she learnt that some of the death magi were cowards.

She walked out of the room and into another similar room but realised there was no way out. The next room had no doors leading out, only a hole in the ceiling. Rynn was wondering what could she do, when she heard a geyser working, next to her. She quickly stepped onto the geyser, and hot steams pushed her upwards, right through the hole above her. She went through a passage to see the two giant blades again. She wondered what psychopath could have built this place - since it was brutal, and served no real purpose, or at least she noticed no such thing. With a sigh, she began to do the jumping game again...

A few minutes later she could see Arokh again.  
"Nice outfit you have" the dragon said, "I hope it is comfortable."  
"Yes, it is" Rynn smiled.  
"Well, I could have guessed. We dragons make fine friends you see - in our life, and even after it" Arokh made a toothy grin, then made a serious face and added "But now, let's get the Runeblade. Every second brings Navaros closer to his victory - and Delon to his death."  
"Fly fast then" Rynn shouted as he jumped onto her dragon.

After some time on the valley, Rynn started to hear a strange noise - thunder, with swirling winds. She glanced to Arokh "Arokh, do you hear that?"  
The dragon didn't reply until they reached the end of the valley, and Rynn could see the source of the sounds that puzzled her. A lot below their level, one could see a blue dome, with dark clouds swirling around it. A place that anyone could say it existed. Yet again, it was there.

"The Rift World." Arokh finally answered.  
"You mean... that's where they've taken Delon to? And where Navaros is planning his comeback?"  
"More or less." the red dragon mumbled "Navaros is still trapped in the Rift - at least I hope so. But yes, that's where Delon should be..."  
"Then let's go there - immediately!" Rynn interrupted.  
Arokh looked at her.  
"It's not so easy. To actually enter there, we need the Runeblade - and that's the only weapon that can do something against Navaros."  
She shook her head in disbelief. "_So close, yet so far"_ she thought. Nevertheless, they would get the Runeblade and save her brother. They _had_ to.

"OK, Arokh. Where do you think they hid the Runeblade?" she asked in a weak voice.  
"I don't know Rynn. Perhaps we should go south, that's the only place we've not searched yet."  
The young warrior nodded. "Then let's hurry. We don't have time to chit-chat - my brother's life depends on-"  
"Wait Rynn," the red dragon interrupted "I think I can see an entrance to a tunnel just behind that grimstone tower, down there. Perhaps is there where the Runeblade is hidden."  
"It's worth a try." Rynn mumbled. "Let's check that tunnel"

"Rynn, don't you think it's rather quiet to say we are at the rift? I mean we have not been attacked by a large number of forces like I would have expected." Arokh said just as he began his decent towards the tunnel.  
"I know why... Look out!" Rynn shouted as a searing bolt of green energy shot from the grimstone tower hitting Arokh in the chest.  
"Argh, that smarts!" He grunted returning fire at the small ball of grimstone at the top of the tower shattering it into hundreds of small fragments.  
"You were saying?" The dragon questioned after recovering from the momentary shock.

"Some of the Succubi oppose their Queen's plans. They said something about the Desert Lords and bringing Navaros back would only make things worse. One of the rebels safely escorted me through the lair otherwise, I probably would have been killed" Rynn answered, shouting above the noise of the rift gate behind.  
"Desert Lords?" Arokh asked puzzled.  
"Yeah, I have heard talk of them from travellers that came by the village. They control a large part of Drakan and came from the planet Sessool or something but I'm not sure. What I do know is that the Wartocks, Grull and Queen Shilla are on their side. The Desert Lords want Navaros to help them but he has plans of his own unknown to Shilla and bringing him back will only bring chaos" Rynn explained carefully, remembering what the Succubi told her.

Arokh cleared his throat looking up briefly towards the adjacent alien planet which could be seen in the early morning sky opposite two of Drakan's four moons. He had heard that the planet possibly harboured life but no one in the days of the Order ever found out as the technology to travel between worlds had not been created.  
"I have not heard of the Desert Lords, I can only assume its something that happened after the fall of the Order but bringing back Navaros will be a grave mistake. We must stop them at all costs and hurry whilst we have the advantage. Once the Rebels are found out, all hell will break loose."

Rynn mumbled something about her brother but Arokh didn't hear her.  
He quickly dispatched a pair of ice bats sending their charred corpses into the lava below, their bodies instantly setting aflame and dissolving into the molten river. His newfound lava breath could kill an Ice bat in two shots making aerial combat much easier.  
Arokh hovered in the lava filled cavern looking through the thick fumes, which made his eyes sting. "Its certainly a hostile hiding place they have here" he noted firing a few balls of lava at a Ebon knight below, landing where it had stood so Rynn could collect the invisibility potion it dropped.  
"There!" Rynn said noticing a tunnel in the side of the cavern, through which a wide river of lava flowed, fed by two adjacent volcanic vents in the walls.

"I see it. It's going to get very hot" Arokh growled and flew down the tunnel skimming the surface of the lava, the insane heat almost unbearable on his underside.  
After a short while, the lava flowed away down a deep chasm and the tunnel opened out into a large, deep cavern with a strange looking hollow stone dome in the centre atop of the central column. It was certainly large enough for Rynn to be able to enter it. The doorway to the inside of the dome was blocked by a grimstone forcefield but Arokh could see the runeblade through a hole in the top.  
"The runeblade is in there" he coughed, the fumes making it difficult to speak.  
"Well, Its too small to fly through but there must be a key or something to open that doorway" Rynn pointed out.  
Arokh landed in front of the door outside the done on the bridge connecting it to the tunnel they had just come from. He peered over the edge and saw boiling lava hundreds of feet below lighting the bottom on the circular cavern with a dull red glow. Rynn jumped off to investigate noticing a claw like structure at the side of the door. "This must be where we place the key" she said turning round to face the dragon who had followed with interest.

"It would seem so" he nodded. "Come on before my feet burn up. The floor is very hot."  
Rynn laughed. "Well, perhaps you should wear shoes to protect your feet from the heat. I can't really feel mine burning. They are warm but not hot."  
Arokh grunted in reply. "The last thing you will see is me wearing any clothes" and lifted into the air with the human on his back.  
"Let's find that key," Rynn said confidently, they had come this far and a simple key would not stop her now.

The bonded pair backtracked to the cavern where they entered the underground complex. Arokh could see that a river of lava flowed down to the cavern floor; through the mist another tunnel could just be made out.  
"Let's try up there" he suggested.  
His rider did not have much say in the matter as Arokh swiftly flew up to the tunnel, again flying above the lava keeping himself as far away from it as possible. Eventually, the tunnel came back out into the open but looking down, Rynn could see no land. Instead were just swirling mists; she was looking down into a defunct volcanic shaft, many hundreds of feet deep. She shuddered and gripped Arokh's neck tighter even though she knew she wouldn't fall.

Suddenly, a bolt of purple lightning emerged through the mists, Arokh quickly evading it with practised ease. A skeleton of a dragon game towards them, its wings torn and withered; it could only fly due to the magic cast on it.  
"Bone dragons." Arokh informed. "In other words Draconic equivalents of the death magi. They are a corpse possessed by a spirit and are very dangerous... as you can see" he grunted rolling to one side evading another bolt of lightning.  
Rynn kept quiet whilst Arokh did his work on the draco-mage using his lava breath to destroy his foe. The battle lasted longer than Rynn thought and Arokh was severely injured, emerging from the fight with barely a sliver of life.

"Rynn... heal... us" he gasped, his chest heaving through the difficulty of breathing. Another bone dragon was coming towards them and Arokh did not have the strength to move.  
Rynn desperately fumbled with her backpack drinking a potion of life just as a lightning bolt hit Arokh again.  
"That was close. That shot would have killed me" he growled. He then let out a loud roar of fury that made Rynn put her hands over her ears and hurled himself at the bone dragon, his claws outstretched.  
Arokh's foul temper gave him the edge, his fury giving him strength to carry on, his talons slashed at the bony creature ripping apart the thin membranes holding the bones together.

After a short while, the bone dragon toppled down the shaft, unable to stay airborne due to the damage inflicted upon it and Rynn healed their wounds. Arokh landed on a platform outside a cave in the rim of the crater looking around briefly for more adversaries.  
"This must be the remains of Mt. Tibor." He said thoughtfully to himself remembering the scene at the volcano's foothills where that final battle against the Dark Union took place six centuries ago. His head turned back to Rynn. "Go on in. I don't want to wait all day" he snapped, waving her on with his head.

Rynn obeyed and walked into the opening wanting to get this over with as soon as possible. The opening led into a small room, its ceiling supported by four large pillars into, which were carved symbols, like ancient text. Rynn also noticed the walls were carved with inscriptions; she could not decipher them but Arokh probably could. However, he was too big to fit through the doorway and Rynn did not give them a further thought.  
As she glanced around the room, she noticed several coffins, like the one she saw on the island containing that ghost like creature - death magi she presumed. There were also a couple of chests and a pedestal at the far end on which sat a rune key.

"Aha" Rynn whispered and crept up to the pedestal watching the coffins to see if they would open. She opened the chests out of curiosity finding one continued a potion of life and the other some fine jewellery. Awe-struck, Rynn pulled out a ring and a large necklace like chain decorated with fine jewels and gold. They were too big for a human to wear and she wondered what they could be for; a war giant crossed her mind but she suddenly realised who would wear such things. A dragon of the Order!  
Rynn excitedly grabbed a couple of rings, a bracelet and the chains then returned outside to Arokh.

"Look what I found" she exclaimed.  
The dragon's ruby red eyes looked down on what the human was showing him and he carefully sifted through them with one front foot. He looked up at his companion with sad eyes.  
"This is typical of what the Order's dragons wore. Here, this bracelet goes around a dragon's ankle; it's to show he or she is bonded."  
Rynn stared at the bracelet; it was made of solid gold and was about 20 centimetres wide and its diameter was about the same width of Arokh's ankle. It looked like it cost a fortune.

"Why don't you put it on?" Rynn suggested.  
Arokh nodded. "It would be my pleasure Rynn. Here, put it on for me."  
Rynn knelt and Arokh placed his right foot into her lap. She undid the clasp holding it together and placed it around Arokh's leg, just above the ankle.  
She stepped back and looked down at it and back up at the dragon. "Suits you" she said with a smile.  
The red dragon smiled back and fished out the bracelet's companion; a small ring.  
"Is that for me?" Rynn asked.  
"No, put it around my toe" Arokh commanded. Rynn obeyed pushing it right up to his foot so it would not catch on the ground. Arokh began to rummage through the rest of the jewellery and pulled out the chain.  
"Would you?" He beckoned.  
Rynn sighed and helped the dragon place the chain around his neck and pulled tight the still strong strap so it would not move about. She could see that a piece of gold hanging from the necklace bore the same symbol as the one she wore. The emblem of the Order.

"Now that you have finished adorning yourself, can I continue?" Rynn said with exasperation.  
"Sure. Look magnificent don't I?" Arokh asked with a proud smile examining his new jewellery thinking how handsome he looked. He felt honoured that he was wearing the Order's finest.

"Honestly, you are as bad as a woman" Rynn laughed giving a quick smile at the dragon and headed back to the pedestal. "That dragon sure does love himself" Rynn muttered as she walked away. Again she watched the coffins to see if they would open when she got close.

Assuming they were empty, Rynn put her back to the rune reaching behind her to grab it. Her throat went dry and a cold sweat came over her. Swallowing hard, she pulled the rune from its resting place and began to run for the door. As she half expected the coffin lids blew off and several death magi surrounded her hurling green floating skulls at her, eating away at her life force. Rynn slashed with her sword hitting a couple and ran for the door as fast as she could leaping on to Arokh's back.  
"What's the rush?... Oh." Arokh said, faltering when he saw the pursuing death magi.  
"Just fly" Rynn shouted in desperation.

Arokh did not need to be told again and he leapt into the air, whipping round to breathe a cloud of fire into the doorway taking out a couple more magi. They soon came back however but Arokh was already halfway across the crater out of reach of their spells. Some followed but gave up after a short while.  
"I got the key, I think" Rynn said to the dragon.  
Arokh's jaw curved into a scowl. "Lets hope it works, I feel we have not got long now before the rest of Shilla's forces get here."

He also secretly knew that Navaros would almost certainly be ready to inhabit Delon's body if he had not done so already but he kept silent, not wanting Rynn to panic.

After a short while, they were back outside the domed shaped structure in the lava filled cavern. Rynn stepped down from her mount and walked over to the claw like structure she saw earlier placing the rune onto it.  
The green barrier dissolved covering the entrance as Rynn had hoped, the runeblade was now almost in her hands, she could see it embedded in a block of ice in the centre of the dome.

As she walked into the dome, she could see a platform around the central pillar containing the runeblade. A statue of an Ebon Knight archer was at one side of the dome and a large unlit torch was on the platform opposite to the statue.  
"Another puzzle" Rynn mumbled to herself wondering what was needed to free the blade. She noticed a lever beside her and shrugging, she pulled it. A loud mechanical noise sounded filling the dome with grating stone and steel as the platform revolved round bringing the torch to just in front of her. It suddenly dawned on her what she had to do; light the torch, revolve the platform so the torch was near the ice so it would melt!

"Aha" she exclaimed seeing that the unlit torch was now directly under the hole in the roof. "Now to light it" she mumbled and ran back outside to Arokh.  
"Find anything?" the beast asked.  
"Yeah, Ill show you," she said jumping onto his back. "Fly to the top of the dome" she instructed, the dragon obeying his bonded's wish.

As Arokh hovered above the dome, he could not see what his bonded was showing him. "What?" He asked impatiently.  
"Light that torch there with your flame" Rynn said pointing out the torch through the open hole.  
Arokh shot a ball of flame at the torch and it instantly ignited with a thunderous boom. "Ah, I see" he growled landing back outside the entrance. "What was the point of that?" he asked.

"You'll see" Rynn answered returning back inside and pulling the lever again so the torch was near the ice.

She waited and waited but nothing happened. Out of interest, she walked up to the statue finding a large red button on the base. She pressed it hoping nothing bad would happen but instead an arrow shot from the statue's bow, lighting itself on the torch and embedding itself in the ice. Within seconds it was gone.  
Heart pounding with excitement, Rynn ran up the stairs surrounding the central pillar and stood by the pedestal on which the blade rested.  
The Runeblade was a medium length sword that looked nothing special. It had some carvings in the blade and a hole in its pommel - for the rift crystal. Rynn picked up the blade, feeling very light in her hands and practised with it for a moment. She couldn't see anything remarkable about it.

With a little doubt in her mind, she returned to Arokh and showed him the blade.  
"My god, its really the runeblade. I never thought I'd see it again, this brings back some painful memories," he said sadly. "Go on then, marry the rift crystal with it then we can be on our way" he continued after a short pause.  
Rynn carefully took the rift crystal from her pocket and placed it into the hole in the sword's pommel. Almost immediately, the blade lit up with a throbbing blue light and the crystal glowed a vivid blue.  
"Now that's what I call a sword" Rynn mumbled, climbing onto Arokh's back.  
"To the rift!" she shouted, the dragon nodding in reply. It was not long now, Rynn could almost smell the victory in the air.

Ethereal winds swirled around them above the deafening roar of the rift. Arokh shouted something but Rynn did not hear him; she was far too busy thinking of the fate of her brother below. Underneath them, a purple orb sealed the entrance of the rift and Arokh hovered lower to it. Again he shouted but Rynn had now got the message; she leant to one side and reached down, the runeblade outstretched. The tip of the ancient sword finally made contact with the dome vanishing it in a show of purple lights. Rynn looked down at the swirling vortex beneath them and raised the runeblade high above her head in triumph and then Arokh tipped forward and plunged downwards into the black hole amidst the swirling winds.

**Chapter Eleven: New Worlds  
**  
The other side was a lot darker than the Volcano they have just left. Arokh and Rynn found themselves in a large room. Its floor seemed to be made of an organic substance, which pulsated and changed shape randomly. There was also a strange odour in the air which neither of them could tell what it was.  
"The Rift" Arokh whispered.  
"The Rift should be something like a bottomless pit, no?" Rynn asked.  
"This is the not the Rift itself. We are very close to it, but still not in it" Arokh replied. Suddenly energy balls flew at them, crashing into the wall thanks to the poor aiming of the enemies. Looking around Arokh spotted four green flying creatures, looking draconic in parts.

Not wanting to be a sitting duck, Arokh quickly strafed aside, and let out a magma shot at the group attacking him. His aiming wasn't the best he could do, but the four dragons were closer to each other than they should have been - so one of them couldn't manoeuvre. A loud blast shook the room, shortly followed by a death roar.  
"Fried, that's how I like it" Arokh laughed, but he quickly stopped when an energy ball hit him in the leg. The three remaining creatures did not give up after the fall of their teammate, and even charged at Arokh. This surprised the red dragon, as he expected them to have more sense and instinct than this. He quickly dived, and let out a long stream of fire at the attackers. Two enemies almost instantly became nothing more than some burning bones and ashes. The forth one did not waste his time meanwhile - he tried to shoot out Arokh's eyes. The projectiles missed Arokh only with the length of a human finger, but still, they didn't hit him. Turning there, Arokh fired a lightning bold at the unlucky foe, who died instantly, falling down without any noise, the floor swallowing it up as if it was eating it.

"We don't have time for fighting" Rynn shouted. "Get me to Delon!"  
"Easy to just command" Arokh growled, as he was seeking an area where he could land. He soon found one, and as they landed a door opened in the wall.  
"Be careful Rynn... Navaros might be waiting there" Arokh told her as she dismounted him.  
"No one is a match for me" Rynn said, then corrected herself "For us, sorry."  
Ending her sentence, she ran through the door.

On the other side was a long bridge, with nothing below but swirling winds. 'This has to be the Rift' Rynn thought. Suddenly she spotted something very bright at the end of the bridge. Driven by the hope of finding her brother, she dashed towards the end. However, the sight froze her heart. Delon was indeed there - surrounded by almost a dozen death mages, who were whispering and conjuring something.

"DELON!" Rynn shouted, and ran closer as fast as she could - but she was too late. The death magi disappeared in deathly screams and Delon suddenly shouted, and jumped up, levitating in the air. He wasn't able to control his new powers totally, as all the mages surrounding him died instantly with the immense spell they had just cast.  
"I am back" Delon laughed in Navaros's voice "Tremble mortals, and despair! Doom has come back to this world!"  
Rynn realised she was far too late. Delon was only living physically now - but Navaros occupied his body. She decided to listen only to her rage now. Holding the Runeblade tight, she jumped at the something looking like her brother.

Navaros was expecting Rynn to attack, and he floated backwards in the air. However, this body was weaker than he expected - he was moving far more slowly he wanted to, and so the Runeblade caught his leg, making a large wound. Screaming with pain, Navaros began to strike back. He gathered his power, and Rynn could only see the shadow of her brother coming towards her - and exploding right in front of her, causing her several wounds and severe headache. She quickly drank a potion, jumped, and struck again with the Runeblade. Navaros laughed as he evaded the move, but Rynn was on her guard, and quickly kicked Navaros in the head. The opponent wasn't expecting this as he was only concentrating on the Runeblade, and he lost his stability for a moment, this forcing him to land on the ground. Rynn did not need more - and a swift and strong strike with the Runeblade, and it was done.  
Yet, it only began.

Delon held his hands at his head, walking backwards. Rynn had to realise her brother wasn't dead at all - she just set him free. But to her greatest terror, Delon took too many steps backwards, and fell off the edge. She could only see him fading into the darkness of the Rift, and a muting scream. She was feeling crushed. Failing so close to victory! Such stupid mistake!  
Just as if the Rift was sharing her emotions, the whole place began to quake.

"No time for tears Rynn!" she suddenly heard Arokh, who just landed behind her, somehow he managed to find another way in. "Navaros is coming back!"  
"I just killed him" she replied on a emotionless voice.  
"You only forced him to flee from your brother, but Navaros is coming back! Quickly, get on me... if we loose, the whole of Drakan is lost - forever!" Arokh spoke hastily. Rynn nodded, and slowly mounted him. She was feeling nothing. She wasn't interested in the fight in that moment, as she wasn't interested in anything.  
Arokh quickly jumped back into the air, and dived downwards, where a giant four-headed dragon was arising from the Rift.  
Navaros came back, but with his own body now.

"Tired of the game, aren't we" Arokh laughed when he saw the evil opponent coming back.  
Navaros's heads roared, and launched various types of projectiles at Arokh. The red dragon expected this, and evaded those with ease, then returned fire with his fire breath.  
One of Navaros's heads tried to evade the shots, but the body wasn't out of the Rift enough to do that - and the whole cloud of fireballs collided into the head, setting it on fire and literally blowing it into pieces.  
Navaros's remaining heads did not give up. They kept on firing at Arokh.  
Arokh evaded a mass amount of shots coming towards him, when suddenly something hit his wing. He nearly smacked one head, which suddenly began to move towards him - likely to bite or eat him. The red dragon flew backwards hastily, while firing melted magma shots at the closing head - which soon blew up, just as the previous one.

The two remaining heads were firing more rapidly now; Navaros must have realised he was about to loose. However, Arokh was now able to get behind them, where they couldn't shoot at him. The red dragon did so and then quickly strafed in front of one remaining head. The head just opened his enormous mouth to fire, when Arokh spat a powerful magma shot into the open mouth. The magma went down the throat of the being, devastating the head with a deafening blast.

The last head was a piece of cake. Navaros was now tired, and was most likely giving up. Arokh repeated the same process: got behind the head, and then fired into the mouth. The last head was gone. Arokh wanted to celebrate - they have defeated Navaros again. Drakan was in safety, finally. However, something prevented him from enjoying his well deserved triumph. He had a bad feeling...  
"Rynn! The Rift! It is closing! We must get into it before it closes down!" the red dragon shouted, without explaining: if they wanted to find Delon alive, they had to go after him. Acting without delay, Arokh dived into the infinite darkness...

Arokh flew faster in the hope of catching Delon but it was all in vain; the walls of the vortex were beginning to come together.  
"Rynn! We must get out of here now or we will be trapped in this dimension forever" Arokh yelled at the top of his voice over the thundering rift.  
"But Delon!" Rynn cried.  
"I'm sorry, Rynn. He's gone. Use the runeblade NOW!" he commanded.  
Without thinking, Rynn rubbed her finger over the crystal and thought of exiting the rift. Almost instantaneously they were directed upwards and arrived back at the volcano, the rift closing behind them.

Arokh hovered for a moment to get his bearings and found a safe place to land ducking to let Rynn off his back. Below them, a vast river of lava flowed noisily bubbling and popping melting everything in its path.  
"What did I do wrong?" Rynn muttered sadly, wiping a tear from her eye. She was stunned at what just happened and couldn't comprehend the fact that Delon was gone. Arokh sighed and answered her question. "Nothing. It was unfortunate. Bad luck, whatever you want to call it."  
Rynn turned to face him and threw the runeblade angrily to the floor. "We were so close" she mumbled. "If we had arrived only a few minutes sooner."

Arokh's head turned to face her; he looked depressed somehow as if he shared her loss. "There is one more thing we need to do before we leave this place. That is to destroy the runeblade." Arokh said firmly kicking the blade back towards Rynn. "Throw it into the lava" he commanded, his eyes now showing signs of impatience.

"No!" Rynn snapped and quickly picked up the blade. "I need to rescue Delon!"  
Arokh felt anger swell up within him but he tried his best to fight it back. They didn't have the time for him to explain fully so he kept it short and blunt, straight to the point. "Delon is dead Rynn. The runeblade must not fall into the wrong hands. We must destroy it."  
"No, I won't let you!" Rynn said angrily holding the sword tighter, clutching it to her chest. Arokh gave a sigh of exasperation and rolled his eyes. "Give me that god damn sword" he snarled snatching it from her. He strode up to the edge of the cliff on three legs and hurled it into the lava below, it disappearing with a yellow flash as it was instantly melted down.

"You bastard Arokh" Rynn cried and punched him hard in the chest simultaneously feeling the blow herself. She leant against him and started sobbing. "Oh I have had enough of this thing" she snapped hurling the Mournblade into the lava.  
"The noise it made irritated me" she explained when she saw the questioning look on the dragon's face. She leant against a nearby rock and put her hands over her face and started crying again as her emotions came to a head when she realised that her task was done even though it ended in failure. She had come so far and gone through so much only for it to end in disaster.  
Arokh tried to comfort her the best he could and after a good half-hour, Rynn was becoming to come to terms with her loss, thinking now more of herself and Arokh; they couldn't stay where they were. She was bonded now, the only human member of the Order so she guessed that brought some kind of responsibilities but she was unsure exactly what.

"Where to now?" she asked the dragon. He turned his head towards her and shrugged. "I guess we now have the task of finding a civilisation that does not want to kill us and making new allies."

Rynn frowned "Does that mean we have some kind of duty to carry out? I mean we are the sole members of the New Order."

"Kind of, but we will have to see what the passage of time brings us" Arokh remarked thoughtfully. There was a long silence as both of them sat wondering of their future and what it will bring. Eventually, Arokh broke the silence first.  
"Well I don't know about you but I'm tired. We should find somewhere to stay then we can go back to your village. If we sleep during the day and journey at night, we can make it by tomorrow morning." He replied exhausted by the recent events.  
Rynn reluctantly agreed and climbed onto the dragon's back. "I know of a small cave. I saw it in the Archipelago, we should be safe" she noted.

Together, they left the scene where Rynn had lost so much and took the long journey across the vast inland lake towards the eastern Archipelago where they could rest in safety.

Arokh lay on the floor of the cave with Rynn huddled nearby. Neither of them spoke, only exchanging glances every so often.  
"Have you lost someone you loved?" Rynn eventually asked.  
Arokh gave a short scornful laugh. "You are joking aren't you? What a stupid question. Of course I have." He paused for a moment then began to explain in further detail. "Well, lets see. The Dark Union killed my family; some even joined them forcing the Order to kill them. I lost my bonded, Heron and all my friends; everything I knew was gone. After the final battle, there was nothing left to live for. Suicide crossed my mind. Now, I have had to kill one of the only female dragons in the world and my life long friend and you think I haven't lost anything? Hah!" he snorted.

"I'm sorry Arokh. I guess we have both lost so much." She apologised shivering slightly. "I'm cold" she mumbled.  
Arokh sighed staring out of the cave entrance noticing a lone ship docking at one of the islands. "I'm sorry for being so offhand. Here, come sit with me" he beckoned.  
Rynn gratefully accepted and lay down with her head on the dragon's chest. Eventually, she drifted off to sleep to the sound of his heartbeat and the day's events were soon a memory.

Chapter Twelve: Strange Voices 

The bonded human and dragon reached the remains of Rynn's hometown the following day. By the afternoon, Rynn had buried most of the dead and was sat by the shallow graves she had dug resting on her shovel. Arokh landed nearby, Rynn turning round to face him, her face dirty and tear stained.  
"I have been up and down the valley and found no-one. We are alone here, even the Wartocks have moved on" Arokh said quietly, his tail swaying from side to side. He noticed Rynn's sadness and moved closer placing a front foot on her shoulder to comfort her.

"There must be other villages though, we should see if we can find any survivors" Rynn noted, thinking her village was the only one to be attacked.  
"No Rynn" Arokh said shaking his head slowly. "They are gone. We are the only ones left in these lands" he continued.  
"Then it's over then. Everything and everyone I knew is gone. There is no home to go to, nothing" she cried throwing her shovel to the floor.

Arokh raised his head looking thoughtfully at the sky. "No. I know of a place. You see, I have been hearing things; something I have not heard for a long time - the call of the Order."  
Rynn looked surprised and looked up at the dragon slowly getting to her feet. "The Call of the Order?" She said rubbing her eyes and staring blankly at her bonded.  
Arokh smiled slightly. "Yes, it comes from where the city of Surdana once stood. We must go there immediately and answer the call."  
"But I thought we are the only members of the Order, surely there wouldn't be anyone left living to make the call. Are you absolutely certain?" Rynn pointed out thinking that it may well be a trap.

Arokh shook his head. "No, I am certain. Remember the legends? Not all of us were killed, it's possible that we are not alone for after all. I must answer the call without delay."

"And what if it's some of the Dark Union playing tricks with you?" Rynn pointed out, her companion quick to correct her assumptions. "It's not Rynn. Trust me" he replied with a smile looking back to her and nodding his head towards Surdana.

"Well, I am not ready, there's a few things I want to do here first" his friend objected.  
"I cannot wait Rynn. We must go now" the dragon replied sternly.

Rynn thought for a moment and came up with an idea that would suit both of them. "Tell you what. I know where Surdana is, you go on and Ill catch up with you in a few days."  
Arokh nodded in agreement but he still had concerns for Rynn's safety; she must not come to any harm which would compromise his ability to reach Surdana in time. He quickly thought that most of the Wartocks would be well out of the way, his scan of the valley had proved this. He sighed and looked at her realising that he was being over cautions. "Are you sure?" He asked.  
"Yes, Ill be fine" came the usual confident reply.  
The dragon walked away to leave but Rynn suddenly called him back. "Arokh, wait."  
The dragon slowly walked back to Rynn and stared at her seeing that she did not say anything.

"Well, what?" he asked with a hint of impatience in his voice.  
Rynn stayed silent and stood right in front of the magnificent beast standing on her toes to kiss him. Arokh lowered his head automatically to make it easier and she threw herself against him, her lips pressed firmly against his jaws. Her tongue slipped into his mouth and flicked across the base of his front teeth avoiding the razor sharp edges and ends. Arokh instinctively did the same, then he tried to pull away but Rynn did not want to let go.  
"No" she mumbled increasing her grip on his head, she did not want this moment to end; the dragon was the only being that cared and showed sympathy at her loss. She put his past arrogance and nastiness out of her mind and focused on his display of compassion and true friendship upon Delon's tragic demise. He was all she had now, her brother dead along with everyone else she knew and loved.

Finally Rynn let go and stepped backwards whispering a faint "I love you", Arokh looking at her with surprise. He did not say anything as he was so taken aback, he did not know the human liked him _that_ much.  
Rynn suddenly felt ashamed at what she had just done. "I'm sorry" she calmly said breaking the silence first, glancing away to look at the ground in shame.  
"No, don't be. I understand" the dragon said softly dismissing her apology reaching to touch the underside of her jaw raising her head so she was looking at him.  
"Come here" he beckoned extending one leg as if to put it around her.

Rynn suddenly burst into tears and hugged the dragon's neck pressing her face up against his soft but yet strong scales. Arokh placed his extended front leg around her the best he could pulling her closer to him.  
"We will seek revenge for this, Rynn. After that, we will build a new home and seek out other humans and dragons. We will rebuild our lives."  
"Okay" Rynn sniffed and stepped back out of the dragon's grasp to pick up the shovel. Arokh saw that she was best left alone and he silently leapt into the air and was soon nothing more than a speck in the sky.

Rynn brought her head up as she watched the red dragon fly off into gentle sky. She took her right hand and placed it on her lips, feeling the warmth of the kiss she gave Arokh. She closed her eyes, slowly thinking about Arokh as a tear escaped her eye and raced down her mud scared face. After absorbing the moment of her kiss for a while, Rynn looked over her shoulder then fully turned to see the lines of tombstones behind her. Several bodies lay stilled still waiting to be put to rest, work needed to be done. As Rynn leaned on her shovel buried in the dirt she gave a small sigh, and continued her work.

Night had fallen with the loving glow of the two moons high in the sky as they watched Rynn patching the last grave needed. Rynn picked herself up, tired and somewhat achy around her. She looked at the yard of gravestones, somewhat haunting in the light of the night. Crosses made from wood leant from side to side in lines and rows with names carved in their centre. Rynn wasn't the least scarred or worried of these ghosts, they were friendly ghosts, ghosts that she knew and loved. Rynn slowly took herself to the premature fire of the night basking in the warmth that laid for her. Before her day's end came, she recalled her final moment with Arokh, the words of torn hope, yet small words of life. Did her battle of Navaros end in nothing but of pain and loss of many lives? She couldn't accept it. She banished such thoughts from her sleepy mind. The song of the small crickets played in harmony as they lulled Rynn to her sleep. She didn't even bother to return to her own home preferring to sleep in the open beside the freshly dug graves.

The torches of Surdana burned luminously in the dark night as guardsmen walked the streets for any trouble that may appear. A line of guardsmen waited at the gates of Surdana as if they were in wait for something to come. A man in fine armour walked up the steps of a watchtower greeting the guards there.  
"Any luck men?" The general inquired.  
"None so far sir," a soldier replied in a small worried tone.  
The general gave a bit of a smirk and reinsured his troops, "Keep faith men, our dragon will come." The soldiers saluted as their general left the tower. The general walked himself to the gate of the city as the fire of the torches kept half his face lit in a strong orange. Just then a voice was heard from a distance calling, "General Dherimon!" Dherimon turned to find the guardsmen waving and pointing in near panic.  
"Calm yourselves men you'll wake the city! What is it?" Dherimon commanded.  
"There is a dragon beyond the distance heading this way," a soldier replied trying not to alert any of the townsfolk. General Dherimon rushed to the gate in haste with his armour clanking every step of the way. Upon reaching his men he gave a tone allowing his troops to hear and not alert anyone else, "Men ready your weapons! Don't be fooled, this dragon can be the one we want, or another dragon from the Dark Union."  
The soldiers marched with their weapons in hand surrounding the entrance of Surdana. Archers kept their sharp eyes locked at the top of the gate as it slowly creaked open allowing General Dherimon to confront the questionable. Armoured knights marched behind with swords of various kinds in hand and large shields to protect from a dragon's furious flame.  
The dragon drew closer and with its sharp sight saw the many weapons aimed at him. Stopping in mid-air as his wings beat heavily, he convinced the soldiers of his side. "Fear not, I am a dragon of the Elder Breed."  
The general keeping his wit and holding his guard replied, "I've known a dragon that could speak human tongue and still be a part of the Dark Union."  
"Good knight I am Arokh of the Order, who fought along the side of Heron in the Dark Wars." The dragon said in hope of no more questioning of his identity.  
"And how do you prove that?" the general replied with a hint of disgust in his voice. Just then a soft voice came from behind Dherimon. "Please general lay your weapons down, is this how we welcome a hero of the world?"  
"Yes me lady." Dherimon gestured his hand to his men to lay down their weapons. A glistening robe of gold came forth through the light of the burning torches as Arokh lands at the gate.  
"Welcome to the city of Surdana Elder Dragon, I am Lady Myschala of Surdana and I thank for you coming." Lady Myschala greeted the noble dragon with hope in her eyes and relief. "Please excuse my earlier actions good dragon. I was merely watching for any dragons that would dare attack," Dherimon apologised.  
"No need for formalities. I know times have been tough since the Dark Wars. And you can just call me Arokh" the dragon said with some haste in his voice.  
"Well come now Arokh, we've much to discuss." The red dragon slowly walked through the gates as the men retreated to their night watch positions.

"Follow me. Tonight, you can sleep in my palace" Lady Myschala said to the noble dragon as he followed behind, his footsteps sounding very loud in the still, quiet city. His eyes darted all over the place; down each alley and up at each building wondering how the city managed to be exactly as he remembered it despite the war and many centuries. He asked many questions about the place but Myschala didn't explain fully, not wanting members of the public hear her conversation with the noble beast; he was after all, the centre of attention, even all of the townsfolk in the tavern had come out to watch him. For the time being, Arokh had to be patient; his questions would be answered much later.  
"Tell me, why do you seek my assistance?" the red dragon asked once they entered the palace entrance hall out of earshot of townsfolk.

Lady Myschala gave a sigh. "It's a long story Arokh, but some number of years after the Dark Wars ended, a new enemy appeared in the world. They are known as the Desert Lords and came from the nearby planet of Sessool. They came to Drakan with the intent of conquering it; the years after the Order were the perfect moment for them."

"And?" Arokh asked when she stopped to take a breath.  
"They quickly befriended the races of Wartocks and Grull, which are now the dominant species on this planet. The human race is almost extinct. To make matters worse, some of Navaros's allies have come back from the dead. Gothraul to name one of them" Lady Myschala continued her voice showing no emotion.

Arokh fell silent for a moment then began to speak. "Navaros was a fool," he said sadly looking at the ground and then eventually meeting Myschala's stare.  
"Well, to put it bluntly, we need your help to restore the Order. Do you remember the gates?" She asked hoping the dragon would remember the last days of the Order as it was written in the books.

Arokh looked up and a glint of hope showed in his eyes. "Yes, of course. I remember Mala Shae and her heroic decision like it was yesterday. Tell me, how many of the gates remain?"

Lady Myschala noted the Dragon's wisdom and polite voice and promptly answered. "Five remain, there's the hub gate here and its four satellites and the odd one or two around the continent but they are no use without their hub gates."  
There was a short silence. Lady Myschala spoke first. "We want you and Rynn to open the four gates enabling Mala Shae to return. Together with the Dragon Mother, me, you, Dherimon and Rynn will be the new leaders of the Order of the Flame."  
Arokh grinned "I knew you would say that although Mala Shae probably would not be interested in leadership of the Order. She would not be able to bond anyway as she does not have a mortal form. No matter, I always wanted to be a dragon lord."

Lady Myschala gave a wry smile and continued to explain her plans. "We have not found any soul crystals, we are very lucky Rynn found yours."  
Arokh laughed "Rynn sure is a good warrior. I'm lucky to have her. We can search for the lost soul crystals once we have achieved our goals."  
Myschala suddenly looked surprised. "I thought you knew that Mala Shae can awaken the dragons without their crystals. We have the Dragonstone to create new crystals so the dragons can bond."  
"No, I didn't know that. Anyway I thought the Dragonstone was lost when the dragon temple was destroyed" Arokh remarked, slightly irked that a human knew more about dragonkind than he did.  
"Not so. We have rescued and collected many of the Order's artefacts" Myschala corrected. She paused to take another breath. "How many Elder Breed dragons went into eternal sleep?" She asked the dragon hoping for the number to be reasonably large.

Arokh sighed, remembering the last battle and its aftermath. Eventually he began to answer Myschala's question. "Hmm, there was probably 120-150 that had their riders killed which automatically put them into stone and roughly a few thousand unbonded that were put to sleep by Mala Shae." His great head turned to face the golden robed woman again. "I'm sure that will be enough," she said confidently.

"Come, let me show you around" Lady Myschala continued beckoning to the dragon to follow her towards the throne room. "Tomorrow, you will need to find the cipher rune needed to activate the hub."

"There is just one problem," continued the lady dressed in fine gold, "A thief has taken the rune and retreated into the Shadowmire Swamps." Arokh seemed puzzled at this wondering why it was his problem and asked, "Why not just send your troops to get the rune?"  
Lady Myschala looked despondent for a moment and slowly raised her voice, "I have sent several of men, yet they have never returned. I sent a spy for me who told me he found the corpses of them thrust on spears; the image was simply awful."  
Arokh was with mixed feelings as he raised his brow, not knowing what to feel and say at the moment. "I suppose I could inspect the swamp in the morning," the dragon said reluctantly.

The two of them came up to a large door that opened slowly and creaked along the way as the guardsmen pulled with their might. Myschala and Arokh walked up the royal red stairs to a large throne room. "Here is where you may sleep. I'm sure you must be tired from your journey," the kind lady said gently. "Indeed it almost seemed like an endless flight," said Arokh as he gave a long yawn and found a spot to rest on the floor. Myschala gave a small smile to herself knowing that there was some hope in all of this chaos. As she went to the window to close the shades to rid of the glowing moons light, she stared at the moons in wonder and hoped of the Order's restoration.

After the windows were closed, the room darkened, lit only by the glowing torchlight and chandeliers, Lady Myschala left the dragon to sleep. What Lady Myschala hadn't noticed was that Arokh was not fully asleep. Arokh collected thoughts of his own and wondered. The dragon felt a bit displeased with himself, yet he still could not pin point what emotion was coming from him. He felt bad about where he was. Here the dragon sleeps in a royal room all in comfort, and there lays Rynn in the mud where her memories stay beside her for the night. He had also questioned the kiss from Rynn, unsuspecting.

Recalling Arokh knew that he was not the type for humans, yet his old dear friend Heron was like a brother to him. The one element to break the solitude and anger in him and turned him into something new. After Heron's death Arokh recalled how sad he had felt before his flesh turned into hard stone and his soul took a long recess from the outside world. He remembered the day he met Rynn, angry and just wanting to be alone, yet he reluctantly went along with the human because he was forced. With his mixed feelings Arokh thought that maybe Rynn was like Heron reborn in a new package. But the thought was hard for the lone dragon to grasp and to accept; it would have to be for later the dragon told himself. Questions of the past gave the dragon yet another reason to take his slumber aside from a day's journey.

Rynn lay on the ground sleeping away for the dawn of day to brink forth. Arokh slept waiting for the Order's rebirth to soon begin. The two both laid with some courage in their heart that the morning glory would brighten even more.

Rynn awoke as a sudden noise echoed through the valley. She stood up from where she was huddled in the corner of a burnt out house and looked around. The noise did not sound again but she pulled her remaining sword closer to her so she could grab it should the need arise. She had foolishly thrown the Mournblade into the volcano as she felt that she no longer needed it and the noise it made gave her the creeps. Arokh told her to destroy the runeblade so it would not fall into the wrong hands but destroying her best weapon was stupid.

She thought again of Arokh and how taken aback he was the day before. She knew the dragon liked her but he certainly did not love her, rather looking upon her as part of his family. Thinking again, she had only known the dragon for a couple of days or so and felt that she had over reacted but did not regret what she did; she felt that his feelings for her would change over time. Rynn believed there was nothing wrong with a human showing physical feelings for a dragon; as long as the relationship didn't go _too_ far.

Rynn hid under a partially collapsed roof to cover herself from the cold rain that had started to fall and drifted off to sleep. Her work had been done there and in the morning she would begin her thirty mile journey to Surdana.Chapter Thirteen: The Beginning of a New Adventure

The road that led to Surdana was not really a road, rather a muddy path that wove through the villages along the coast. The air was cool; the district of Surdana was in the northern part of the central continent and rarely enjoyed hot sun. The winter months were drawing to a close leading into the spring; on high ground, snow and ice still clung to the ground slowly defrosting leading to soggy lowlands.

Rynn's feet squelched in the mud as her tired legs carried her onwards. During the afternoon, she passed a couple of villages but, like her home, they were destroyed. The human wanted to bury the dead but a task like this would take days, if not weeks to clear up. She had to get to Surdana, Arokh had not returned so he must have found something. Finally, the evening sun broke from the clouds warming the lands with its soft yellow glow. Rynn sat down on a rock exhausted and glanced across the bay watching the waves crash continually at the rocks below. She could just see her village at the other side of the huge bay, now nothing more than a spec in the distance.

Rynn reached into her backpack and began to eat some stale bread she found in the ruins. It was hard and dry making it difficult to eat so she helped it down by collecting some water from the river nearby that flowed into the sea. It was quiet, Arokh was correct that the Wartocks had moved on; nothing came to challenge her apart from the odd scavenger which posed no threat. She figured she was half way, it had taken her almost all day to walk fifteen miles but she kept going, well into the night until she finally had to sleep it off. She crawled into an uninhabited cave and removed her boots to rub her blisters eventually going into a deep sleep.

Meanwhile, back in Surdana, Arokh lay waiting for her. It was now his second night in the palace and he was wondering where his bonded had got to. His day had involved looking around the medium sized city and getting to know its military forces who he would eventually be working with. He had never thought Surdana had survived the Dark Wars; in fact a lot of it was destroyed but the humans rebuilt it exactly as it was wanting to preserve its splendour and ancient pre-Order architecture. The population of Surdana was small and consisted of knights, nobles and rich humans who could afford the high taxes Lady Myschala imposed on them. Other humans that still existed lived in small villages dotted around the world or found their fortune in piracy, travelling the world in their beat up ships. Their system of government was virtually non-existent, every village or settlement generally fended for themselves, occasionally trading with neighbouring villages or pirates. Of the great cities that were once plentiful in the world, only Surdana had survived the Dark Wars forcing humans to resort to their ancient tribal nature.

Arokh let out a long sigh, he could not go to sleep. The palace was quiet but he had too much on his mind. He would have to try and find the cipher rune again the following day, which would be no easy task. He grunted and rolled over, the stone floor was becoming uncomfortable and he felt angry that he was not given a soft bed to sleep on. Lady Myschala had said he and Rynn could use the palace as their homes till something was sorted out but a cold stone floor was no way to treat the saviour of the world. He didn't even have any privacy; people came and went all day and the guards patrolled during the night.

He lay there uncertain of his destiny and whether he and Rynn could actually pull this off; restoring the Order was meant to be made difficult so the Dragon Mother would not fall into the wrong hands.

Before the Elder Dragon went to his dreams his sharp hearing picked up a noise that seemed to have come from the gate. Arokh lifted himself from the cold marble floor to see what all the noise had been. Peering through one of the windows he saw a trail of people and a few carts hulled in by horses and donkeys. The soldiers had allowed these small survivors to enter Surdana with their few paltry treasures. Just then a creek came from the old palace door as a shimmering dress walked forward. "Arokh, what seems to be the trouble?" Lady Myschala inquired. There were many things on the dragon's mind, all these new ideas and changes happening all at once the dragon sighed away not knowing what words should come from his mouth. "Tell me, what is happening down there?" Arokh gestured with head asking Myschala to peer with him.  
"Surdana has had the reputation and the nickname "Man's Saviour". We take all of those that have been victim to the recent attacks. Here with our heavy guards we are probably the only city out for miles. We greet such survivors with open arms into our fortress but houses have become hard to come by." As Lady Myschala spoke such words her voice seemed to have no character, which puzzled Arokh. Other humans that he had encountered displayed emotion of different sorts, fear more than others at a time like so. Still Arokh kept his mind to his question as Myschala continued to converse of Surdana's life. As she went Arokh took a moment to look at Lady Myschala. Her dress glimmered in the gentle moon's light almost like a sun. Two opposites watching over the human race.  
"You must be wary old friend," the gold dressed lady kindly stated. "Not to worry I've just needed a night's rest. Tomorrow I'll be in search for the rune," Arokh said with some tiredness in his voice. The red dragon slowly walked over to where he was sleeping as Myschala went to leaving the room. The doors slowly closed creaking to their closed position. The dragon stretched his legs as far as he could and plopped himself on the cold floor. The dragon closed his eyes for his much needed rest for upcoming ventures.

The sun crawled up the horizon to greet the day to those that lived on the land it knew. Rynn had slowly stirred herself to wake while hearing the joyous music of a bird. It took Rynn time to realise there was another life in cheer that wasn't an enemy. As she peeked through the damp cave's door, a tiny blue bird sang a cheerful song to welcome the new day. Rynn gave a little smile as she told herself that there is some hope. The warrior looked back to find her mud stained torn boots lying near to assist in her travel yet again. Rynn exited the cave's maw as it dripped little orbs of clear water. As it always had the road looked long painful to any traveller? Rynn knew this was not the time to whine, her mind set she pushed on the mud made trail to Surdana.

With less than a mile's travel the girl's ears picked up the sound of wooden wheel at work ahead of her. Slowly pacing forward Rynn turned her head to find a wagon in the distance heading the same direction, maybe even to Surdana she thought.

Rynn followed the wagon for the last mile of her journey until she came to a large pair of doors some several tens of metres high. They were made of thick tree trunks and were almost impenetrable. Two armoured guards stood on either side and archers could be seen on the top of the stone wall stretching from one side of the narrow valley to the other.

Rynn noticed the guards were wearing armour in pristine condition and there was some sort of royal emblem on their chests and matching shields.  
"Hello there" Rynn shouted.  
"You must be one of the refugees. You are welcome in Surdana but you must leave your swords here. Only daggers or small blades are allowed in the city" one of the guards answered.  
Rynn thought for a moment, her sword was not much use anyway as it was worn and rusty so she promptly gave it up.  
"I am not a refugee, Sir. I am Rynn, bonded of Arokh. I suggest you let me in immediately." Rynn said sternly.  
The guard nodded to his companion to open the doors. "I'm so sorry Madam, please go through."

Rynn walked through the gates meeting some more guards on the other side. She could see the highest buildings of Surdana in the bottom of the valley.  
"Is that really Surdana down there? Is it still standing after this war?" she questioned.  
The royal guard nodded. "Indeed it is Madam. Lady Myschala, the ruler of the city awaits you in her palace. She needs to speak with you at once."  
"I'm not speaking to anyone until I speak to my dragon first. Have you seen him around?" Rynn snapped impatiently; her journey had taken its toll on her and she was quite irate.  
"Indeed he has. A magnificent creature. He is looking for a Rune for the gates or something, he should be back soon."  
Rynn smiled, thankful she was in the right place. "Ill make my way there then" she said as she walked away.  
"Be careful, there are a couple of bandits stalking this road, we have not caught them yet" the guard shouted after her.

Rynn did not answer and began to walk down the muddy road. The day was somewhat warmer than yesterday, the spring season coming round at last. Suddenly a couple of Grull ran out from a cave to her left blocking her path.  
"Stop! Olaks road. Olak no say you use. You pay fine; all your gold" the creature grunted threatening her with its spear.  
Rynn frowned and looked at the pathetic creatures with disgust. "I don't have any gold. So that means you get nothing doesn't it?" She said scornfully.  
"You lie. All human have gold" the Grull continued.  
"Really, looks like you are out of luck. Get out of my way" Rynn commanded easing forward drawing her dagger.

One of the Grull lunged at her and Rynn ducked rolling to one side, swiping at the other one in the legs. The creature howled in pain and ran round her to attack. Rynn leapt to her feet doing a backwards flip to land behind the first Grull slashing its neck from behind. The second tried to attack again but Rynn quickly got out of the way blocking its attack with her shield. The shield smashed straightaway and the Grull stepped back surprised. Rynn took advantage of the moment, stabbing it in the stomach killing it in a matter of seconds.

She looked around for more Grull and carefully crept up to their hideout looting it gaining a health elixir and some more gold.  
"Time to get to Surdana before I get ambushed again" she muttered and made her way across the stone bridge into the city.

Rynn walked down the main street towards the imposing palace that stood at the far end of the city. The streets were busy with humans going about their daily business like nothing was happening, unaware of the destruction and war outside the city. The houses all looked identical neatly built in formation, clean and spotless. The shops, blacksmiths, alchemists etc and the tavern were larger but followed the same basic design of the ancient city. People said hello and tried to make conversation as she walked through the streets, it seemed to Rynn that she would fit in there; after all it was now her new home.

Suddenly, a shop door burst open and a man came running out pursued by the shopkeeper.  
"Spy! Somebody call the watch!" he yelled. Immediately, two knights confronted the fleeing man and the man quickly morphed into a winged creature, rather like a Succubi but it had three faces upon its square head. It was dressed in fine armour and wore beautiful crystals and other jewellery. The head swivelled round so that one of its faces faced forward, Rynn could see it had no flesh, rather just a skull. The creature unleashed a bolt of green energy surrounding one of the knights killing him instantly. The other knight swiftly killed the creature, it disappearing in a terrifying scream.

Rynn ran up to where the incident happened and looked across at another woman who came over to greet her.  
"What was that thing?" Rynn asked.  
"A Desert Lord. The creatures behind all of this death and destruction, they came to Drakan about 50 years after the Dark Wars and have enslaved or killed most of the human race. It's why we called you and Arokh here. To destroy them." The woman explained, her voice soft and quietly spoken, like a rich person would speak like.

"You called us here to stop them, they don't look like much" Rynn pointed out, seeing that the Desert Lord was seemingly killed easily.  
The robed woman remained stern faced. "They are not to be underestimated, their magic is beyond anything of this world. They like desert lands and they have turned many of Drakan's lands into scorching desert with their magic, even boiling away seas in some places. That is just one of many things they have done." She smiled and continued on to introduce herself.  
"I am Jade; a sorceress and I was one who made the Call of the Order to bring you and Arokh here. I can teach you some of my magic and the history of the Desert Lords. Come see me in my tower when you find Arokh" she suggested.

"Er, yeah, sure. Where is my dragon? I want to speak to him at once" Rynn snapped impatiently wanting to see her bonded as soon as possible.  
"He will be back soon, please hurry to the palace, Lady Myschala will explain everything" Jade replied then saying a phrase of magic and disappearing.

Rynn ran across the Town Square and took the lift up into the tower leading to the palace. A woman dressed in golden robes accompanied by an armed knight met her on the bridge leading over the river to the palace itself.  
"Rynn I presume?" the woman dressed in gold asked, her voice immediately annoyed Rynn as it was distinctly posh and upper class. She had come across people like her before who discarded poorer village dwellers like rubbish.  
"I am." Rynn answered promptly.  
"At last! Come, I have much to tell you" Lady Myschala beckoned her to follow into the palace.

"Tell me, have you heard of the spirit dragons?" she continued as they walked through the palace and back outside towards a large disabled gateway. Rynn's face remained blank.

Sighing, Lady Myschala continued to explain. "They were the ancient spirits of dragonkind and one remains, Mala Shae. It was her that led the dragons of the Elder Breed into the sleep of ages. Afterwards she travelled to the spiritual planes through this, the Mother's Eye" she explained pointing at the gateway in front of them.  
Rynn looked on exasperated wanting to see Arokh; she showed little interest in what Myschala was showing her. To her, the gateway just looked like a giant stone ring with dragonheads around its circumference. A few pedestals were on either side and steps led up and into the ring, nothing really remarkable.  
Myschala's guard spoke up. "I am General Dherimon who is in charge of the military forces around here. We need your dragon to open this gateway and its four satellite gates so Mala Shae can return."  
"Don't you see? We can bring the dragons of the Order back into the world!" Myschala added seeing that Rynn simply yawned openly.

Rynn suddenly realised what she and Arokh had been brought there to do. "Why can't somebody else have done it?" she asked.  
"Only a dragon of the Elder Breed can open the gates. He is looking for the cipher rune now" Dherimon continued.  
"You mean Arokh?" Rynn asked surprised.  
Suddenly, Arokh made his appearance. "Look, the dragon returns!" Dherimon shouted as Arokh landed to stand by his bonded's side.

Rynn was about to welcome her bonded but Dherimon spoke first. "Did you manage to find the site Arokh?" He asked the graceful dragon.  
Arokh nodded in reply. "I did but the trees were too dense and I could not get close." His head turned round to face his bonded.  
"I'm afraid you will have to venture into the swamp and get it for me" he said without welcoming her first.  
Rynn placed her hands on her hips in objection. "Well, that's a fine greeting! If you think I'm lumbering round in the muck just for a stupid rune you're mistaken!" she fiercely objected.  
"Please, excuse my bonded. She can be rude sometimes" Arokh apologised for Rynn's behaviour. He forcefully pushed her to one side away from Myschala and Dherimon, one of his front feet pressed firmly into her back as he pushed her along. Rynn ran away from his grasp and whipped round to face him.

"Look Rynn" he said angrily. "Take note of these people, this is not rubbish they are talking, we can, theoretically bring the Order of the Flame into the world. Now, stop being so stubborn and get that damn rune before I loose my temper. It's under the tree of mourning, in the swamp."  
Rynn reluctantly agreed not wanting to annoy the dragon further. "Okay, Ill do it but I need better weapons."

"Here, this will get you started." Myschala said throwing a bag of gold to Rynn who caught it and placed it in her pocket. "There is a blacksmith in town, get what you need and make haste to the swamp." she continued.  
"The only thing I need now is a bath and a change of clothes," Rynn said showing the group her torn and dirty boots.  
Arokh laughed "there's no point yet Rynn. Look at the state of me, you WILL need a bath when you come back from the Shadowmire swamps!"  
Rynn noticed the gunge on Arokh's legs and swelled up with anger. "You think its funny? Well I don't!"  
Arokh tried to stifle another laugh, he was clearly enjoying this; he had already had made arrangements for one of Lady Myschala's servants to bath him, so he was happy.

"Come Rynn, Ill take you to the blacksmiths" he welcomed.

"Oh and take this note here Rynn." General Dherimon searched his belt for an object but didn't seem to locate it. "Now where is that note, I remember placing it here somewhere." While the general continued his search Rynn noticed a small white paper in her bag of money and pulled it out, "You mean this general?" The general having an embarrassed start in his voice, "Ah yes that's it. Show that to the local blacksmith, it's a discount for what weapons and armour you may need.

Rynn placed the note inside the bag and tied it to her belt. With the note in hand Rynn quickly took to Arokh's side as to avoid any more embarrassing moments. As she got herself on the dragon's back Arokh took his wing under Rynn's foot to push her up on his back. Once Rynn had placed herself the red dragon leapt in the air and created quite an air beat. Arokh's long and strong wings gave a powerful gust of wind as he brought himself up higher for flight. General Dherimon run a bit to where Rynn and Arokh once stood and called, "Be sure to be careful in the swamps Rynn! I've lost many men and we dare not risk losing you!"

Now Rynn knew she had faced many dangers left and right, she saw this Shadowmire nothing more than her other ventures. After all, the one bonded that defeated Navaros could surely pass through some filthy swamps. As Arokh took to the skies Rynn thought of how good it was to take a break from all the walking and to soar through the winds like very few have. The wind blew her hair back as the two raced to the central area where the shops were placed.

Several of the villagers saw the red flying dragon just above their heads, some waved hellos while others were in shock as to see a friendly dragon, one of the Elder Breed. Arokh found himself a place to land though a few people had crowded it. "Excuse me, outta the way, dragon landing here." Arokh warned the busy villagers below him. The villagers quickly took their things and moved with haste giving the dragon a clear spot to land on. Arokh placed himself in the small circle the people made for his landing. Before Rynn got off Arokh's back she took a moment and saw the amused coloured faces of those all around her and the dragon. Arokh hadn't seen so many faces of humans that were innocent to dangers. All the human faces he saw were either scared or dead besides his companion. So to pass all this Arokh simply looked above the heads of all the villages acting casual.

As Rynn got of Arokh's back she took to the nearest person in awe and asked, "Um excuse but where is the local blacksmith shop?" The person she had asked heard her question yet kept his head to the dragon and lead a stray finger pointing in the direction of the smith shop yet didn't say a word. Feeling a bit awkward she gave her thanks and went to the smith shop leaving Arokh to the staring faces. Arokh was not the social kind except to the military, which was a need.  
Rynn went through the crowd and finally came to the smith shop. She opened the old wooden door with a little creek to it. The hallway seemed dimly lit but it didn't stop Rynn from entering. She caught the smith at work behind a counter tempering with a sword. "Um excuse me, I came here to buy some weapons," Rynn asked slowly as to not make the blacksmith lose his concentration on his tempering. "Well then miss yeah came to the right place." The blacksmith said with a booming voice. He gave his tempering a recess as he took a cloth to wipe his face clean of all his sweat. The smith stood up and turned to the counter noticing the lovely Rynn. "Well then miss take a look at these fine weapons." The blacksmith pulled out a wooden shelf of some kind that displayed weapons all across it, each sword and dagger as shiny as the other. Bows finely tuned and arrows straight and sharp as ever. Rynn made her selection of a Steel Short Sword and Wood Long Bow to range herself if need be. She handed the note that came with the gold as her discount.

"Well by the looks of it ya got a bit of room for something more. But tell me miss where's a pretty girl like you going with all these weapons? And by the way my name's Brekk" the blacksmith said with his ounce again booming voice. "Rynn, and I'm headed out to the Shadowmire."

Brekk looking a bit curious made a suggestion of some Leather Armour, good enough for Rynn's budget. The purchase was made and weapons and armour were exchanged. "Before ya go lass, think ya can do me a favour? There's a nasty little bugger out in the swamps, calls himself Toadfist and a natural stink like him stole many of my wares. He has a valuable helm I wouldn't mind getting my hands on; if you could kill him and retrieve the helm, I'd be grateful. Big reward in it for ya." The blacksmith added a bit slyly at the end.

"I'll be sure to keep it in mind." Rynn said equipping herself with her new armour and readied her weapons in the right places.

Coming out of the dark shop she saw that the crowd was still there all around Arokh. Rynn laughed at this scene that held for so long and seemed well, funny. "Don't you all have jobs to go back to?" Rynn said aloud making sure that all heard her.

"The lady's right we do!" a mother holding her child in hand said. The crowd broke into a hundred voices all around with their jobs, business, and trades. Arokh gave a big sigh of relief as if he had been holding his breath for days. This moment gave Rynn a bit of satisfaction as Arokh was in turn embarrassed himself.

"Come on now Arokh," said Rynn grinning to herself.

The two walked to the other side of the city where an open gate and guards stood. Rynn came up to one of the guards and inquired about the location of the Shadowmire.

"Follow this road down there. You'll see a wooden door leading into the swamp. You sure you want to go there miss? It's quite a terrible place."

"Yes, I'm quite sure" Rynn reassured the guard and went along her way to the Shadowmire.

"Rest in pieces" the guard shouted after her turning to his companion who burst out laughing at his sarcasm.

The two bonded came to the entrance of the swamps where one of the river's forks flowed beneath a wooden door and into the hillside. They both noticed that the door was too small for Arokh to go through.

"I guess I'll be doing this one by myself then" she pointed out.

"You take care Rynn." Arokh answered letting her dismount.

At that point Rynn didn't know which she disliked more, all the warnings of the swamps or people telling her to be careful. Going through the swamps would probably prove to the others the warrior she really is, but Arokh already knew better. Rynn opened the old door as the other side of it was covered with some moss. Rynn went through to begin yet another adventure.

"This is the part I always hate. Always afraid when Rynn gets hurt." The dragon mumbled to himself.

Rynn stopped when she suddenly thought of something, she came back outside to speak with her bonded again. "What are you going to do whilst I'm gone?" she asked the dragon.

"This and that. Finding out more about our enemies" he answered promptly stepping backwards slightly. Rynn leant forward to give him a quick kiss. "Love you, wish me luck" she whispered.  
Arokh frowned, his eye ridges covering his eyes slightly. "You really do love me don't you?"  
Rynn paused for a moment. "Yeah, I think you're quite a stud. What do you honestly think of me?" She asked.  
"Stud?" the dragon questioned not understanding what Rynn meant.

Rynn glanced up at him and grinned. "You don't know what stud means?"

"Err, no. Please enlighten me," he said craning his neck closer.

Rynn tried to keep her face straight but she couldn't help smiling. "Well, it's only applicable to a man, it means handsome, good looking, you know someone who has a nice body; someone the women are always after."

"So you mean I'm basically sex on legs?" Arokh said cocking his head on one side, his jaw curved into a slight smile.

"Well, if you want to put it like that. I suppose it's the closest analogy." Rynn said now laughing openly seeing the dragon's puzzled expression.

"Go on, what do you think of me?" She asked again breaking the short silence. Arokh shook his head in amusement mumbling 'stud' to himself then stared at her, his face now more serious. He shifted uneasily and eventually replied "Well, err, you are certainly a good friend and companion. I suppose I do love you in a sort of way but only like I would my own sister."  
Rynn looked slightly disappointed for a moment and then turned to enter the doorway leading to the swamps, which resided at the bottom of a rocky crevice through which the river flowed.

Arokh flew away and returned to the palace landing before Lady Myschala. She beckoned for one of her servants to come over.  
"You called for me?" The young man in his early twenties asked.  
Lady Myschala acknowledged him and answered. "Yes, I have a task for you. Arokh here, needs a bath. Take him down to the river and take a brush with you." She ordered.  
The young man looked at the dragon who's head followed till their eyes met. The man went weak at the knees and stuttered "Yes, M'lady... With pleasure."  
Lady Myschala walked back into her palace leaving the man and Arokh on the bridge. "Shall we go then? Or do I have to wait all day?" Arokh snarled. "Here, get on my back."

The man tried to mount the dragon twice but failed. Eventually, Arokh lost his patience and grabbed the man in his front feet and flew up into the air, the human shouting in protest.  
Arokh dropped him by the riverside and walked into the shallow waters, he extended his scales on his back so they stood on end. "Make sure you scrub all the dirt and dead skin from under my scales. If I feel itchy, Ill knock you from here to the other side of town" he snarled. There was something about the servant he did not like. Maybe it was the word 'servant' as the dragons of the Order used to treat them with disrespect as they were generally incapable of fighting and were only considered worthy enough of jobs like dragon grooming.

"Geez, you're quite nasty to say you are a dragon of the Order. Ill tell you now I don't like to be spoken to like that." The young man said, continuing to wash the dirt from the dragon's legs.  
Arokh stepped back so the man fell on his face in the water. "What? How dare you! Don't you ever answer me back again, you snivelling little wretch!"  
The man crawled forward and continued his work, frightened of the imposing beast. "I'm sorry to have offended you, Sir. I apologise."  
Arokh stared down at the servant. "Later, I will teach you some manners; dragons must be bowed down to when greeted by humans. Furthermore, I won't accept your apology until you get down on your knees and kiss my feet. Ill let you clean them first though, that mud is particularly nasty."  
"Yes, Sir" the servant mumbled and continued to scrub the caked on mud off Arokh's chest.  
Clearly, Arokh was beginning to enjoy his authority. If everything went to plan, in a few days he would be a dragon lord; it would not be just servants that would have to bow down before him, it would be almost everybody, even some dragons. He smiled to himself at the prospect enjoying the relaxing motion of the cleaning sponge on his muscles; the servant was doing his job well.

Chapter Fourteen: The Swamp of Peril 

Meanwhile, Rynn was beginning to make her way into the evil smelling swamp.

Songs of the crickets and bellows of frogs were heard when Rynn entered the swamps. The water she stepped in was fine and clean as it came from the outside. Coming to the end of the small river a little waterfall fell into the swampy lake where the water turned from clear crystal to a scummy emerald. The odour of the swamps started to reek in as Rynn waved her hand in front of her nose. There was a small path beside Rynn where she took to and rinsed her feet, though it seemed pointless to. Near the pass was a wooden sign and some wooden stakes. Rynn came up to the stakes that were dimly lit with a torch that could barely laminate itself in the darkness of the Shadowmire. Upon closer inspection the steaks had human heads stuck on them and a sign reading "Warning. Leave now!" which was painted with human blood it seemed. This site gave Rynn a slight chill up her spine, but she pressed on.

So far there had been no signs of anyone besides the friendly frogs and insects. From behind a somewhat loud voice shouted, "Sermina! Sermina where are you! Oh no, Trogs! Ahh!" Rynn jumped in shock making her heart race, but a life needed to be saved. Rynn placed her hand on the handle of her Short Steel Sword ready for combat. Peering towards the direction where the sound came from, three Trogs surrounded a civilian dressed in brown on the floor begging for his life. Rynn decided to be stealthy and ambush the Trogs, but then the Trogs made their move. One of the Trogs picked up the worried man and placed him over his shoulder. "W-w-w-where are you taking me? Put me down!" the poor man begged. "Silence human," a Trog replied in a deep reptilian rumbling voice. "You trespass our swamps, now we'll have you as food and your head to add to our collection. Hearing this Rynn knew she had to act fast. Walking forward Rynn placed her foot on a rock which happened to be covered by slippery moss causing in to trip and fall into the murky foul stagnant water.

"What was that?" the leader of the group of Trogs asked sharply. Rynn took herself out the water for a gasp of air. "Another human. You two kill it!" the Trog commanded with haste. The two Trogs took out their clubs ready to fight and Rynn did the same with her sword. While they exchanged their battle faces the other Trog started to run with the weeping man. "Oh no…" The Trogs charged with their rusty clubs. Rynn blocked the Trog to her left thrusting her sword to the other as the Trog intersected the attack. As Rynn was focused on the right Trog the other spun ready for a back swing. Rynn eyed the other and cut off the head of the Trog immediately in front of her. The Trog lost his balance and Rynn took a stab at the other one through the chest. Regaining himself at the sight of his dead companion, the cowardly Trog ran off with the last remaining Trog of his group. Rynn took her sword out of the dead Trogs and ran after the fleeing reptilian creature.

The fleeing Trog gave out a warning cry and continued to run. Rynn recklessly disregarded the cry thinking if was begging in its own tongue. Within awhile of the cry a magical bolt came flying through the air nearly missing Rynn and crashing into the rocky wall. Rynn stopped in her tracks trying to find where the bolt came from. Turning from place to place Rynn couldn't find the source, it was too dark to see anywhere that far with the dim torches. Just then another bolt came hurling at Rynn with a direct hit. Rynn was blown back a into the water.

"Ow!" Arokh said in shock and tossed the servant scrubbing his back off. The boy went flying and landed on the water. Gasping for air at the sudden shock he got up and saw that the dragon seemed a bit hurt. "Everything alright sir?" the boy asked trying to sound as polite as possible. Arokh focused the pain off and said, "Never mind you. Get back to scrubbing my wings boy." "Yes sir," the boy replied with a bit of intimidation. Not far off Myschala was watching Arokh off her castle window.

"Pardon me m' Lady but wouldn't you say the dragon is taking advantage of our services?" A man's voice asked.

Myschala turned her golden gaze around and spotted Zola Dane, her royal seer in his fine blue armour. "A simple bath is all it is," Lady Myschala assured Zola. "He seems to be turning my servants into jesters by the looks of things. "Not to worry Zola, once Rynn returns they will help us unlock the Gates."

Zola Dane turned himself around giving one last word, "I hope it can be done as soon as possible m' Lady. I'll resume my duties as of now." And with those words Zola left.

Rynn raced up the river seeing two Trogs in front of her and prepared this time. One Trog cast his bolt magic and the other fired an arrow. Rynn leapt to the side of the bolt and fending off the arrow with her shield. Perfect timing she thought. Rynn sliced the archer Trog and span around to knock the wizard Trog with her shield then slashed him with her sword. "Help me! Someone help!" the crying man called. Rynn looked to where the cry came from; in a little alcove lit by a single fire in the centre. She ran through the doors seeing several Trogs surrounding a black pot ready to cook.

"Get her!" a Trog yelled. Each of the Trogs drew out their long deadly nails and posed for a fight. All four of them leapt into the air going for a strike. Rynn rolled past them all and swiftly turned her sword behind her hoping for a hit and luckily striking a Trog in the back, which gave her satisfaction of her quick reactions. One Trog jumped to Rynn's face, as Rynn rolled to the side and unveiled her sword to the Trog's side. The third Trog standing in front of Rynn was ready to strike. Stranding on her toes she pushed over the pot knocking it off balance hitting the small Trog on the side of his head and kicked his skinny body to the wall pinning him. Before the last Trog could call for help she kicked the black pot at the scared Trog hitting it and breaking its brittle and fragile ribs. "There now that wasn't too tough," she told herself as she sheathed her sword back and turned to the paralysed man.

"Are you alright?" Rynn asked with concern.

The frightened man pulled his arms away from his shocked face to see Rynn in front of him and the Trogs dead. The man sighed breathing deep and then turned to his rescuer. "My daughter. Have you seen my daughter?"

"Now hold on a minute," Rynn spoke with patience. "Its dangerous out here. What happened to your daughter?"

The man picked him self up dusting what dirt was on him and as he did said, "The Trogs, they kidnapped her and I've been looking for her. Oh dear I pray she's alive."

Rynn saw the hint of please help me in his voice and reassured the man, "I'll go look for your daughter. Why don't you wait at the entrance of the swamps where it's safe."

The worried man agreed and went to the entrance as ordered. Rynn turned around and saw the mess lying around. She took a moment to look at one of the Trogs. Their eyes big and red; helping them to see through the dark mist, and their skin a fine green to match with the dirty emerald water. Rynn knew she would need to be more cautious about this situation as the Trogs could hide anywhere.

Coming out of the small alcove, Rynn continued down the scummy water for the Cipher Rune. As the warrior came up there were trees that had wooden platforms about them. Rynn thought it would be wiser to be among the trees where the Trogs could not hide so easily. Jumping as high as she could Rynn caught the edge of the platform and pulled herself up on top. More platforms were about for climbing, Rynn didn't seem to mind at all. Jumping from platform to platform Rynn got herself to the top. There was a small wooden bridge that was at Rynn's opposite side. Rynn squinted a bit and noticed a small box at the other side. Slowly walking to on the bridge there was something that caught the warrior's eyes.

Whilst Rynn casually walked around the unpopulated platforms, she spotted a few Trogs hiding in the water below as if they were waiting for her to come down. This gave Rynn an idea. Reaching the other side Rynn picked up the box, which felt a little light. She brought it over to the side where the Trogs waited for her as if she didn't know they were there. The box flung open, and there was a Heath Elixir inside. As Rynn placed the Elixir away in her bag, she carefully took out her bow and arrows. Rynn placed her foot on the box and shoved it off the platform hitting one of the Trogs' head. Swiftly an arrow was fired killing off another Trog, two more remained and ducked themselves fully under the water, and this gave Rynn some difficulty. Jumping down to the lower platforms Rynn had hoped to get a better view but nothing came. Just then a slight ripple came from the water where Rynn took quick aim and shot. The Trog burst out of the water holding its head and collapsed back into the water dead. The last Trog came from behind and attempted to jump at Rynn. Rynn turned and quickly grabbed the handle of her sword and spun hoping for a hit, which came true.

Just then an arrow flew by Rynn's head nearly missing. Turning around Rynn saw there were turrets with wooden masks on them. Sheathing her sword again Rynn jumped off the platforms and ran to a tree for cover. With her back to the turrets a few more arrows passed by. One thing Rynn noticed that the turrets were slow to their movement, which gave her some edge. They slowly retracted into the water whilst they reloaded and rose up again for another shot. Rynn took off from her cover and started to move around quickly as possible. The arrows of the masked turrets ran through the forest nailing trees all around. With good aim Rynn fired on one of the turrets with a few shots causing it to explode. She continued to do this to the other remaining turrets carefully and slowly choosing the best moment for attack.

As Rynn continued to run she ran right into a Trog catching it by surprise. The Trog turned around attempting to slash Rynn catching Rynn's leather armour. Rynn dodged the attacks of the Trog throwing her bow down and thrusting up with her sword. She got of a hold of the Trog placing her sword to the throat and slitting it. Rynn took the dead body in her arms using it as a shield running towards the turrets. Passing by Rynn swung at the turrets hard with her sword disabling them one by one. Stopping in her tracks she looked behind her and saw that the turrets were all done, throwing the body back to the ground and continuing on her way with the man's daughter in her thoughts.

Shrill female human screams crying in desperation sounded ahead indicating that the man's daughter was not far. Rynn hurried in the direction the sound was coming from not thinking of the possibility she may be ambushed; it sounded like the voice needed help... fast.  
Rynn came rushing through muddy water as fast as she could. There, in front of her, were several Trogs getting ready to roast a young girl at the stake. So much was their determination to silence and kill her; they did not notice Rynn coming up behind them giving her the element of surprise.

The first three Trogs were easily dealt with but the fourth was harder. Rynn noticed he had brown skin rather than green and was larger than the others. No matter, Rynn dived at the creature taking a hit herself from its deadly claws; it was difficult to move quickly in the thick mud that lay under the surface of the water. Grimacing in pain she attacked again as the Trog fired another bolt of lightning at the woman. This was the opportunity for Rynn to finish the creature off whilst it was defenceless and it fell over into the muddy water with a satisfying splash, its arms failing about briefly as it drew its last breath.

Rynn strolled over to the woman and untied her.  
"Oh, thankyou! I thought I was going to be killed for sure" the woman thanked then looking around for more Trogs that may have crept up.  
"Never mind that, what were you doing here on your own?" Rynn asked, surprised that the woman was stupid enough to do such a thing.  
"I was, looking for adventure," the woman said confidently.  
It became apparent to Rynn that she seemed a bit dim witted. "Okay, well, your father is waiting by the entrance. Ill take you back if you like" Rynn suggested.  
The woman refused however. "No, I can make it back on my own."  
"No you can't" Rynn pointed out in exasperation.  
"I can manage. I'm a good fighter," the woman said again.  
"Very well then if I can't persuade you, take this" Rynn said handing her a rusty sword she found in the swamp.  
"Oh thankyou!" The woman exclaimed again and ran away.

Rynn shook her head in amusement and climbed the nearby ladder, the only way to go onwards. She killed the two Trogs waiting at the top and entered the nearby cave taking some more gold from some chests - gold that the Trogs had taken from their unfortunate victims.  
As Rynn was about to leave, she noticed a ladder going down through the cave floor. Inquisitive, Rynn started to descend but the rotten rungs gave way and she toppled into the lower part of the cave below. Surprised by her quicker than normal decent to the bottom, she picked herself up and continued on through the partially flooded cave. Suddenly a pattering noise sounded nearby.

"Spiders!" Rynn said out aloud, breaking into a cold sweat; she could not stand the things, she remembered her encounter in the mines just after she had met Arokh a few days ago.

Rynn saw no other way around it, she had to break through the enlarged spiders. The only difficult part was trying to rid the spiders since they were small and somewhat hard to fit. Rynn quickly dispatched a few spiders hoping it was just a few. Rynn continued to the musty cave and something caught the corner of her eye. Turning around she saw a larger spider, seemingly two or three times as big as the others. Rynn dreaded the thought but decided to make it quick. Carefully creeping from behind Rynn took her sword and made the spider two halves before it knew what hit it. Wiping the sweat off her forehead Rynn heard what seemed to be some crackling noise. She turned cautiously and saw spiders crawling down from their webs seeing Rynn as good food.

Rynn quickly made some distance between her and the spiders. While Rynn was backing up from the spiders she jolted up as she bumped into a barrel behind her. The spiders disconnected themselves from their web and made their way towards Rynn. Rynn placed the barrel down and pushed it running over the chasing spiders, which squashed them against the dust covered rocky floor. Patting the dust off her hands from the old barrels, Rynn moved forward up a small natural ramp and into another 'room' of the cave.

As Rynn continued she gazed around looking about her. There were large cocoons of spider-sown silk. Rynn shivered at the thought of what large spiders would be in there. In her path there was a small spider staring at Rynn. It brought a temporary smile to Rynn knowing this one would be easy. She came up to the small spider ready to strike, when surprise took her and one of the larger spiders jumped to her. As fast as she could Rynn blocked the attack with her shield, which slipped into the spiders mouth. The large spider gnawed on the shield as an appetiser and looking at Rynn for the main course. Rynn flung her sword at the spider dispatching it and did the same to the small one. After killing the two Rynn saw a small wooden elevator leading her out making her happy, just one problem stood in front of her, more spiders.

Rynn didn't bother to waste time and ran as fast as she could killing whatever spiders may tried to attack and activated the elevator to her safety. The cave started to glow again with the help of a few torches around shedding their cosy orange light against the rocks casting flickering shadows. There Rynn saw an exit to the cave and something else; the largest tree she had ever seen in the centre of an open clearing where lush green grass grew. Straightaway she knew it was special as a small, now broken wooden fence surrounded it and there was a strong magical presence in the air. It was the Tree of Mourning.

"That's it. That must be the tree of Mourning Arokh told me about." She said out aloud bringing relief thinking that her journey through the swamps was finally done. Rynn ran through the fine green grass for a closer look at the aged tree. There was a small hole at the bottom of the tree and Rynn took herself for a look. There she looked down and saw jewels about and with them the Cipher Rune. "Seems a bit too far down for me to jump. I better find another way around."

Walking away from the tree Rynn saw another tunnel entrance to take as the clearing was surrounded by hills and tall rock faces, which she could not climb. Upon entering the tunnel, it started to darken, Rynn only hoped for no more spiders. Her wish came as the tunnel lead back to the swamps with a few Trogs to greet her. Making no hassle of the battle Rynn cut down the Trogs and went on top of a fallen tree acting as a bridge. There a Trog taunted her for a fight and Rynn gave the Trog its up coming death. Following down a narrow path Rynn saw yet another platform for her climbing. Rynn placed her sword away ready to jump when a dash of magic barely missed. Rynn fell to her back side to avoid any attacks. Cowardly Trogs cast magic at the bottom of the swamps, and Rynn was in quite a predicament with nowhere to hide. She saw no other way but to range herself for the fight, and any pain she took from the bolts she knew Arokh would have to endure. Taking out her bow and arrow she aimed for the wizard like Trog and fired. The green mist ruined her aim making Rynn having to use a few more arrows than needed. Along while the Trog continued to cast magic in Rynn's direction. Rynn dodged the magic as best as possible absorbing whatever blows came. Finally the magic bolts stopped as the final arrow hit its target ending the Trog's life.

With the end of that fight Rynn jumped on the platform hoping for no more surprises.

Rynn jumped from the platform and entered a nearby cave. She was angry with Arokh, as there was plenty of room around the tree of mourning for him to land. The tree itself was in a clearing away from the swamp area and Rynn felt that she had to endure the unpleasantness of the swamps longer than needed; why Arokh didn't drop her off there she didn't know. The dragon could be awkward sometimes.

The cave was partially flooded with water and small droplets dripped from the ceiling, the sound echoing through the cave as they splashed into the water. Rynn could see two stone archways at one end leading to some steep stone steps leading downwards, out of place in the muggy swamplands. Seeing that there was no other way, she descended the stairs emerging in a giant ancient abandoned meeting hall, decorated with finely carved stones and statues. The room was empty bar one Trog, which Rynn quickly despatched with her bow and arrows before it could come close.

Looking around, a doorway at the other side led into two other small rooms which were not of much interest to the warrior; they only contained a few wooden benches and barrels containing small amounts of gold. Another doorway lay between the two staircases leading to the cave above from which a faint human voice could be heard; it sounded like singing!  
Rynn hurried over and walked down another short set of stairs bringing her out into a makeshift prison. In one of the cells, a man sat on a barrel singing like a drunk.  
"Are you alright?" Rynn asked.  
The man stood up and looked at the young woman with surprise. "How did you manage to get in here?" He asked coming closer to the steel bars.

"I am looking for something," Rynn said coldly as she pulled the lever to let the man out. He looked to be in a reasonably healthy condition; only imprisoned a short time ago.  
"I am Nichols, the bold. I came here to search for an ancient weapon. Something special but alas, I never found it." The man introduced himself.  
Rynn suddenly became much more interested. Her weapons were becoming worn and the weapon Nichols spoke of sounded very interesting.  
"What weapon?" she asked.  
"It's called the Earthblade. Here, take this. It's a book needed to obtain the blade. If you manage to come across it, speak the phrase from the book whilst stood on the magic runes and the blade will be revealed. I have given up looking for it now, I'm going home" Nichols explained.

Puzzled, Rynn continued to ask for more information. "What are these runes?"  
Nichols combed his hair back and continued. "I don't know. They are embedded in the floor somewhere; keep your eyes open. The Earthblade once belonged to a warrior of the Order. Indeed, this place you are standing in was once one of the Order's strongholds. Humans occupied it since the fall of the Order up until around 50 years ago which was when the Trogs moved in."  
Rynn stepped back; accepting the book Nichols gave her. "Well, thanks, Ill keep my eyes open. I have to be going now, you should be able to get back safely, I don't think I left anything alive back there" Rynn laughed.  
"Okay. See you around" Nichols continued and let Rynn go on her way.

Rynn wandered through the remains of the hideout and came across a large library in a room off the meeting hall. She reached up and lit a couple of wall torches that were extinguished and examined one of the rows of bookcases in the room. The books were all in reasonable condition and Rynn picked one up and began to read from it but unfortunately, it was written in a language so old she could not understand a single word. Flicking through the pages noting the pictures of dragons, she could see it was something to do with the Order.  
She looked up and saw a magnificent painting of Navaros being slain by Heron and Arokh hanging over the fireplace, Arokh looked different as shown in the painting - the artist clearly had not seen a dragon. Rynn assumed the picture was painted long after the Order's demise.

Leaving the library, Rynn felt a little sad; all this history and lore was rotting away in a ghastly swamp, like a period in time that was forgotten. She made a mental note of mentioning it to Lady Myschala so some of it could be rescued - after all it would be much easier now.  
The warrior continued on through a few empty rooms eventually coming to a massive kitchen and dining halls. The huge stoves were still intact and even pots and pans hung from hooks in the walls. Knives, forks and plates were found in little alcoves carved into the rock. There was even a sink full of dirty crockery ready to be washed but now fungus and moss were growing on the plates rather than food remains. In the dining area, the massive tables surrounded by chairs were exactly as they were left like the place was abandoned in the middle of a feast. Rynn could almost picture the knights clad in armour around the table, getting ready for battle.

Rynn however, had no time to gawp around - she knew where the cipher rune was but needed to find a way to reach the cave under the Tree of Mourning. She looted the kitchens and dining area and walked through a large hole in the wall coming back into the swamps, the crickets and frogs bringing back the familiar surroundings.

Ripples of the water escaped from Rynn's legs as she got herself in the water once again. She looked around making sure no more Trogs were in sight. Continuing her way, she came across a wooden sign in the middle of her path that read "Keep Out". But this sign was different from the sign at the entrance. The markings seemed to have been carved instead written in blood. Rynn thought there might be another being other than the Trogs that dwelled in these forsaken swaps.

Passing the sign the warrior came up to an interesting wooden house with torch light piercing through the windows. Rynn took a path coming out of the waters and leading it to the wooden shelter. Rynn knocked on the door hoping for an answer, "Hello? Is anyone there?" No reply. Rynn decided not to wait and opened the door shielding her eyes from the bright lights. After her eyes adjusted to the light level, the warrior looked around the small house. Little monsters of different sorts were hanging in cages all around. Most of the little creatures were aquatic becoming from the swamps; she instantly recognised that one of the creatures was a goblin like the ones dwelling in the Eastern lands near Rimril's tower. However, there was still no person or intelligent creature in sight. Rynn took a look around hoping to find something to help her get the rune.

As she was wandering around, a small man came through the door. "So come for something to steal I see."

Rynn turned to see who it was in the aged voice. It was a small man somewhat bald with white hair. His brown pants were covered in dirt wearing a red shirt and pickaxe in his hand. "I didn't come to steal anything," Rynn explained, "I was hoping someone could help me get to the Tree of Mourning. And you are?"

Putting his pickaxe down the old man said in a grumpy voice, "I'm the hermit of this place, that's what I'm simply known as. And you must be that girl that dragon was talking about."

Rynn didn't know what to say. She had thought that Arokh wasn't able to get through the swamps earlier, which interested Rynn. "So tell me more about this dragon," Rynn said eager to know.

"Some red dragon came falling down the trees nearly crushing my house. I told the pest to get lost and that there was nothing here. But he wouldn't leave; he was after a rune of some kind. I told him I had no rune, but recalling that the Trogs kept their treasures in the Tree of Mourning. Then the dragon climbed back up top and left."

Rynn was more puzzled about Arokh now, but decided to question Arokh later. "So then tell me how can I get to the Tree of Mourning." She asked.

The old man got tired of telling stories to strangers and sat down for a minute. He knew he wouldn't get rid of Rynn unless she got what she wanted. " There's a tunnel near here that can take yeah there. But them Trogs gone and sealed up the place. Ya can get through with an explosive, and I can get yeah one. Problem is the Trogs have taken a hold of the powder mines I work at. If ye can get there and grab me four bags of powder I'll make an one and be rid of yeah."

Rynn wondered when she would stop running small errands, but she had to do what she had to do. As she was about to leave, the old man interrupted, "And take that key right next to ya. You'll need it to open the mines." Rynn took the keys and headed out for the mines.

"Oh how I hate these swamps" muttered Rynn as she splashed her way to the mines. "I don't see how anyone can live here, even weird old men."

Her body ached despite the health potions, and the smell of the swamp was making her head spin.  
Every footstep was cold and unpleasant. And though she couldn't see the sky at all, she was sure it was night or the weather was changing as the air had become colder. "Surely I haven't been in here all day?" she asked herself finally deciding that the weather must have changed. She checked her weapons as she ran; "And I see the dreary air is getting to my weapons as well" she mumbled. Rynn made a mental note to buy weapons more wisely, as even the easily killed Trogs wear down a good sword when they come by the score.  
Rynn knew her sword would not last forever, and didn't think she was going to do too much looking around for one here.  
She wanted to see as little of the swamp as possible and was hoping that she was moving to a dry cave for a while. No Trogs seemed to be around but Rynn took a health potion for good measure as she entered the mines.  
Rynn had been in many a dark cave and knew the horrors that could be waiting for her.  
"Just please, no more spiders" she prayed. Rynn smiled as she walked around the mines. These halls were once well cared for, definitely not just an old scavenger cave. It was dry, and the lamps on the wall were still lit. "_Which probably means The Trogs are close by_" she thought. However compared to the swamps it was warm and cosy.  
Making sure no one was around one last time she took the time to rest a bit and dry off.  
"Surely that Arokh won't mind if I don't work myself to death" she said as she sat down next to a wooden table. It didn't take long for her to dose off, what with the long journeys and maybe the potion had something to do with it.  
That Alchemist did say something about them having side effects. She could almost feel the warmth of her home fireplace as she dreamed.  
_Home, I just wish I were home, back with Atimar and Delon…  
_After dozing for an hour or so, she suddenly she heard a crash. Rynn woke with a curse, realising her mistake. She could have been killed easily as she dreamt of home.  
"_Funny how I only have nightmares while I'm awake_". Rynn got to her feet noting that the sounds came from behind the wall on which she had slept. Sword in hand she listened to what was apparently two Trogs having some sort of a quarrel.

"Hah, Toadfist eat your brains for sure! " Came from the first Trog.  
"Don't care, Better than dragon food. You stay, get boiled, Toadfist stupid, Toadfist don't know what he fight. I find better swamp, make it mine, move now or I make you move."  
"AAARRRGGGGGGHHH! Toadfist kill me if you go, So I kill you now!"  
Rynn ran around and found the room they were in. Apparently one of the Trogs was smart enough to be afraid of her. Or maybe the rumours of her and Arokh's passage had spread farther than she thought. In any case there were always quarrels within the dark creatures' ranks.  
Rynn saw the first and apparently larger Trog stooping over the dissenter ready to kill him and figure this would be a could time to kill him instead.  
"YOU DIE NOW" said the larger Trog, to his rebellious counterpart.  
He was facing away from Rynn as she ran up behind him.  
Then the smaller one yelled " It's her, The dragon beast woman,"  
"No Funny, Hahh Hahhh, you die NOWWW!" He killed the deserting Trog,  
"Stupid Toad" Yelled Rynn, preferring to see her victim's fear before she killed him.  
"What, No, you …" Rynn's sword slid easily through the Trogs skull. "Well I never mind two for the price of one" said Rynn jokingly. "Oh, and you have just what I'm looking for" She smiled as she pulled a bag of powder from the smaller Trogs' crude satchel.  
Excited and refreshed from her short nap, Rynn left the room to continue her pursuit of the ingredients for the explosives the old man would make to breach the blockade the Trogs had built.

Rynn carried on in the mines for about another hour before she found the last bag of powder.  
"_Right time to get back to that old hermit_." Rynn thought as she turned back the way she came.  
"I wonder what Arokh is doing, probably laying around the castle being treated like a king. Well the next time he wants someone to go wading around in some smelly swamps he can do it himself. I wouldn't get this smell off me for weeks." Grumbling to herself, Rynn came back to the Hermits home.  
"So you got it lass, good. It will take time to make some more explosive so I'll just give ye me last one." said the hermit throwing Rynn the Explosive. She caught it and asked. "So what do I do with this?"  
"Are ye simple girl, light the end put it were you want the wall to blow and stand well back" replied the hermit impatiently turning back to his work.  
Rynn stuck her tongue out and left. Walking across the bridge she turned right into another cave, she travelled a few meters in when an archway came into view. The arch had been hastily blocked with odd blocks and looked ready to collapse. Walking up to it Rynn lit the fuse and placed it next to the wall, she then turned and ran behind a block a few feet away...  
BOOM!  
The bomb exploded and the wall caved in leaving her way clear, also Rynn was happy to note she had taken out two Trogs with the wall.

Rynn travelled on through the cave killing any Trogs she met, she got lost several times due to the Trogs shutting doors so she had to go round and find away to open them and boy did the Trog pay who shut the door on her. Finally she came to a fork in the cave. To the left was a path leading round a big crevasse and the other sloped down and she thought she could hear birds.  
"Hmm, which way should I go?" Rynn stood there pondering her next move.

After a short moment, Rynn took the right hand path and followed the path down. She killed a couple of Trogs that were lingering in the tunnel and looted a couple of chests, finding some gold. Looking up, Rynn noticed that the roof of the tunnel was covered in tree roots and some had grown right into the tunnel itself. Pushing aside the straggly roots, Rynn saw that there was a dead end ahead, ending in what looked like a cave entrance, smaller than the width of the tunnel. Seeing that no enemies were around, she ran up to it feeling that her goal was near.

When Rynn got close, she could see that what looked like rocks from a distance were actually thick roots of a very old tree. In between the roots were lots of different coloured crystals, shining in the light that shone down the hollow tree trunk. Above was the hole Rynn had come to in the clearing but there was no way she could climb up to it and take the short route back to Surdana. "The tree of Mourning!" She exclaimed running inside.

"Now, which one is it? Arokh never mentioned what it looked like" Rynn mumbled to herself as she picked over the crystals and goblets. One of them was definitely different to all the others, and deciding that it must be the Cipher Rune, Rynn picked it up with trembling hands and put it into her pocket.  
"Now to find Toadfist and that sword the man was talking about" she muttered and left the base of the tree to take the other path at the fork she came to earlier.

Back in Surdana, Arokh was just finishing his bath and massage. He stretched and felt the gentle warm sensation in his leg and wing base muscles where they had been carefully rubbed and growled with content walking briefly into the water to rinse. He stepped from the cold water and shook himself, droplets of water flying off and hitting the cobbled street. He looked down at the servant and then quickly examined himself, noticing his scales gleaming with the oil rubbed on them and smiled.  
"I feel great. You did a good job, boy. I'd recommend you as a dragon groom and masseur if my mission is a success" he grated, his voice sounding loud in the relatively quiet street.  
The spotty young man looked up at the dragon, and muttered his thanks and was about to leave when Arokh stopped him.  
"You never learn do you? You didn't address me as Sir and you haven't apologised to me yet. You won't get far with manners like that" he snapped, clearly irritated. The dragon's jaws curved into a cruel sneer as he thought of what he was about to ask. "On your knees boy" he growled.

The young man started to tremble with fear slightly and obeyed, dropping to one knee before the majestic beast. "Kiss it!" Arokh snarled thrusting his left foot closer to the frightened human. He slowly bent down and gave the dragon's foot a quick kiss as shouts of laughter suddenly came from the street behind him. Turning his head around, he saw several townsfolk stood in a small crowd looking at him. "Again, this time say you are sorry!" Arokh said again. The servant scowled at the small crowd and kissed Arokh's foot again and mumbled "I'm sorry. Sir" with the emphasis on the 'Sir'.  
"Go on, get up" Arokh growled, he wasn't that angry rather enjoying his authority. No-one would challenge the might of a Elder Breed dragon, at least not someone like him.

Lady Myschala and General Dherimon were watching from the bridge to the palace above. "That dragon clearly likes his authority. Are you sure he will be a good leader of the Order?" Dherimon asked turning to face the golden robed woman.  
"I'm sure of it. He told me the Dragon Mother cannot bond as she is a spirit dragon watching over dragonkind. He would make a good leader, yes but his bonded needs a lot of training; she is still just a village guard after all. Hardly a noble." Myschala informed, expressing her feelings for the future.  
"Would you bond then, M' Lady?" Dherimon asked.  
Lady Myschala sighed. "Probably, I don't know yet, but I'd expect you to and all of your knights. The dragons can teach them the art of dragonback combat."

Arokh flew up to greet them, landing on the bridge.  
"Yes, I would bond" Dherimon said finishing the conversation.  
"Discussing the future I see?" Arokh asked folding his wings to his side.  
Myschala turned to face the dragon and smiled. "Yes, we already have a number of knights that would bond" she said, showing no fear now that they had got to know each other.  
Arokh grunted and sat down. "It would be wise to bond a small number of knights first, then more as needed. I would recommend bringing back the experienced dragons of the Order first, i.e. the ones that went into eternal sleep due to the deaths of their riders. They will be able to show your people the art of dragon riding." He paused and continued. "Like I said, we will bond the rest of the dragons as they are needed, they will need training in combat. Most of the dragons that went into eternal sleep were not bonded, some were neutral to us, civilian dragons as I'd like to call them."

Lady Myschala frowned. "You are correct Arokh. We do not want too many dragons around at once; we don't want fighting between them. Not to mention the problem of finding food for them all. We almost certainly do not want the dragons who served the Dark Union back that's for sure."  
Arokh grinned exposing his razor sharp teeth. "The Dragon Mother did not put the dragons swearing allegiance to the Dark Union into eternal sleep. Most have died of old age by now but I would imagine there will be the odd few left, sleeping in stone or not. Only the good will come back."

"Good to hear that, but there is one question; how do we bond?" Dherimon asked, wanting to know how the soul of a human and dragon is bound.

Arokh coughed and there was a short silence as if he did not want to be bothered to talk to the general. Eventually, he began to explain. "There is an artefact known as the dragonstone. Myschala tells me you have recovered it from the ruins of the dragon temple. The traditional method was to use the dragonstone to transfer a dragon's soul into a crystal, which could only be done at the temple. The dragon would then return to its lair with its soul crystal and rider where they would bond using a specially created altar in the dragon's lair."  
Dherimon nodded and beckoned to the dragon to continue when he saw he simply paused to take a breath.  
"Of course, things are different now. The Dragon Mother can bond a human and a dragon but a soul crystal will be still required. Once a new temple or whatever has been built, we can bond via the traditional method. I guess you have some empty soul crystals so to speak?"

Myschala interrupted "Yes, we do, but only a couple. We found them in the temple. Jade the sorceress can make more though as needed so we have everything we need." She smiled back at the dragon who looked somewhat pleased.  
"Talking of which, I need to pay her a visit. I need to know more about these Desert Lord things." With a rush of wind, the dragon was airborne shortly landing outside Jade's tower.

Dherimon watched as the dragon landed at the tower about half a mile away. He was not sure who exactly would be the leaders of this 'New Order'. Certainly it would be Rynn, Arokh, Lady Myschala and her possible bonded but he wasn't sure where he would fit in. He thought of Rynn and Arokh; two different characters - Arokh, a noble beast; polite and full of wisdom, fitting in well with the rich and wealthy. His previous bonded, Heron had progressed through the ranks from a warrior to one of the most honoured members of the Order. Rynn on the other hand, was still just a warrior and needed a lot more experience of the world, which would simply come with time.

Perhaps once bonded he and his dragon would be a worthy addition to the council; after all, the entire original Order was ruled by the 'council of five' which consisted of four bonded and one Magi. Perhaps this proposed New Order would follow in the footsteps of their heroes of long ago?

Arokh glanced at the door to the tower realising it was way too small for him to enter and pondered for a moment how to get the sorceress's attention; there was nothing apart from a few windows at intervals up its sides. "Jade!" he shouted into the tower after pushing the door open with his nose.

"There's no need to shout my dear" came a voice from behind. "I knew you were here."

Arokh turned around to face the sorceress and smiled weakly.

"Ah, a useful ability for a magician, the presence spell."

Jade nodded to acknowledge him got straight to the point.

"I know you are busy Arokh so Ill try and be as brief as possible about the Desert Lords. That is what you are here for I imagine?"

The dragon nodded. "I have a vague idea from what others have told me but any useful information would be an advantage."

"Very well." Jade answered briefly looking around to make sure they were alone. "They came to this world from the Planet Sessool about 50 to 100 years after the Dark Wars ended. The particular group, well a whole army actually were banished from their homeworld due to dishonour and betrayal of their people. They are an evil and cunning race and they have no regard for human life. As you know, the human race is in danger of becoming extinct."

Arokh nodded for her to continue.

"Anyway, to cut a long story short, they gradually spread throughout Drakan over the centuries. I don't come from this part of the world; I come from the south of this continent. You see, when we tried to resist their rule, they sent a beast to destroy us; the pain golem, a mountainous abomination made from pain and misery itself. Everyone was killed but I managed to escape and come here. Unfortunately, they followed."

"Well, I know they are allied with the Wartocks and Grull and many more of Drakan's races that want humans eradicated so I can see why they have become so powerful." Arokh noted.

"Well, powerful they are. What they lack in physical strength they make up for in magic. They have boiled many seas away to desert."

"That's nothing new" Arokh muttered sarcastically. "I have seen spells of unimaginable destruction rip apart this world six centuries ago. Do you not know what happened in the Dark Wars?"

Jade frowned at the dragon's negative attitude and took it as a sign that he wanted to be off. "I must warn you Arokh. You can easily kill them but do watch out for their magic. They are not to be underestimated."

Arokh smiled and nodded. "I will. I dealt with Navaros twice and the Desert Lords should be no different. I guess we will see what time brings. If you excuse me, I have to be going."  
Jade bowed and walked towards the tower door. "If you have any more questions, you know where to find me."

"Thankyou for your time Jade. We will almost certainly be back later." Arokh answered and flew back towards Surdana.

Back in the swamp, Rynn was becoming irritable. She was sick of the stench of the swamps and now was trying to find a way back out; a map was found in one of the Trog's caves but it made little sense. She carried on down the right hand path of the fork she came to earlier passing through some more ruins gaining the Earthblade until she came to an area that was full of human heads thrust on spikes.  
Rynn shuddered as she walked past them; some were badly decomposed and were a hideous sight. Rynn had seen some disturbing things in her life but the sight almost made her physically sick.

Suddenly, she stopped when she heard voices down below. Carefully, she ventured over to the edge of the path and saw that she was overlooking a deep cave decorated with wooden figurines and a large totem pole stood in the centre.  
"That must be Toadfist's throne room" she whispered to herself, edging away hoping not to be seen. She checked her weapons to see their condition; they were worn but should last a little while longer; somehow she felt that Toadfist would be a tough enemy. If she got his helm, those 2000 gold pieces would definitely come in handy.

A lift presented itself ahead and Rynn tiptoed across to it hiding in the shadows to avoid a group of Trogs, she did not want to attract attention to herself now. Stepping on the lift automatically made it begin its decent and the Trogs turned round startled by the noise. The lift moved quickly however and she was out of sight before they noticed the intruder.

"Why isn't the human girl dead?" Toadfist bellowed at a frightened Trog who was stood before him at his throne.  
"Human move like the wind... kill many Trog... cannot kill" the creature muttered.  
"What, how many does it take to kill a puny human?" The enraged Toadfist continued waving his staff in the air. He stepped off his throne and walked up to the trembling Trog. "Get out there and bring me her head" he shouted.

"Talking about me?" Rynn said as she walked into the throne room unnoticed.  
"Argh!" Toadfist snarled and hit the Trog as hard as he could knocking it to one side. It lay there breathing heavily clutching its gut in pain.  
"You are dead!" The Trog chieftain shouted at Rynn waving for his troops to come but they did not hear; Rynn had already killed them.  
"Really? Say, that's a nice helmet you are wearing. May I have it?" Rynn asked sarcastically placing her hands on her hips.  
"Come and get it then" Toadfist yelled and lunged at Rynn.

Taking her sword in hand Rynn lunged for a quick slash. Toadfist easily blocked the assault and stepped back. "I not so easy to kill like others," Toadfist said as he realised Rynn had pulled out the wrong weapon to fight. Her sword was damaged quite a bit but she turned it to her advantage. Toadfist gathered himself as he cast two orbs of lighting at Rynn. The warrior threw her damaged weapon away and dashed away from the orbs pulling out another sword. This made Toadfist wonder and prepared for whatever move Rynn had in store. He stood on the damaged sword so Rynn could not pick it up again but she jumped in between the two orbs and threw her other sword at him hoping for an easy hit. Toadfist saw the attack and jumped to one side while Rynn took small damage of the bolts in the air and landed near an altar, but her attack didn't go without fail. The bolts were attracted to the broken sword and headed for Toadfist. Toadfist was focused on Rynn when the impact of the bolts blew him to the ground.

The both of them regained themselves for more. Toadfist started to dash at Rynn with speed. Rynn came to jumping up and doing a neat back flip causing Toadfist to gash his claws into the stone altar. Rynn looked about and took the skulls from the altar and threw them at Toadfist. One made a direct hit while the other allowed Toadfist to bring out his claws as the stone cracked away. Rynn threw more skulls at Toadfist with aim, but Toadfist deflected the skulls with great agility. Rynn dodged the deflected skulls and landed before the altar. Rynn saw no way around the fight but to get close in hand to hand. Rynn dashed at Toadfist as Toadfist did the same. Sharply Rynn took her weapon out and the two had their weapons locked hand in hand. Toadfist looked at Rynn's new weapon in surprise, "The Earthblade!" It had been the one weapon used by a legendary knight of the Order, now in the hands of Rynn a new arisen Order knight.

As the Earthblade gave its glow Rynn pushed Toadfist off keeping him off balance. Rynn grabbed the handle of the broken sword and threw it at Toadfist gashing into his lower chest. Then Rynn got to Toadfist with a quick strike through the chest finishing the Trog ruler. "Well then, glad that's over," Rynn told herself. She carefully took off Toadfist's helm and wore it herself. She figured she didn't have any other room to carry it so it was the only option if she wanted the prize. If only she could see herself she thought. Before leaving the chamber Rynn saw some treasures about, gold Toadfist had stashed. Coming to the chest Rynn collected the spoils and packed it away heading for the exit.

As Rynn came through a tunnel it lead back out to the swamps and their familiar smells which rarely bothered Rynn being in the swamps for so long. Torches lit her path guiding Rynn to where she hoped was the exit. Soon enough her surroundings became familiar, and there was a wooden carved statue that she had seen from the very start. Giving off a sign of relief Rynn continued her way to the exit. There she saw a man and a girl standing near the river. Rynn recognized the two faces and approached them. "Dear me who are you!" The old man asked in beat up clothing. Rynn took off her helm to reveal herself to the lives that she had saved that day. "Its you! The one who saved my child! Oh here take this as thanks. We are indeed grateful." The father handed Rynn a sack, which seemed to be filled with gold. "Come, we should leave these swamps together," Rynn told the two. All in agreement they went along with Rynn. Rynn was glad to see the nice crystal blue waters again. This reminded her of the time when Arokh said she would need a bath, and it was probably so, but being in the swamps so long no one in the group could tell.

The group came to the door that lead to the outside and opened it. The bright light of the sun was strong to their eyes. As soon as their eyes adjusted, the three bid farewell as the father and daughter were escorted to Surdana by a guard standing by. The feeling of the clean water made it tempting to take a bath at this hour, but Rynn figured she would return the Rune to her impatient bonded. Rynn felt silly wearing the helm so she carried in her hand and headed up the hill to Surdana.

**Chapter Fifteen: The Bringing back of the Dead**

The first thing Rynn did when she reached the safety of the city was to visit the Blacksmiths to collect her reward. Giving a loud knock on the door, Rynn entered hearing the familiar booming voice, "Cmon in who ever ya are."

Rynn came up to the counter as the blacksmith saw Rynn in amazement. "Well look who's here. If it isn't little miss bloodbath herself? Well how can I help ya?"

Rynn brought the helm up to the counter waiting to hear the blacksmith roar. "Well look at that! You've managed to get the bloody helm. Well lass I keep to me word, here ya go. 2000 Gold just like we said." "Thank you. I'll stop by tomorrow before I leave." Rynn said.

"Off on more adventures are now lass? See you the tomorrow then lass." Brekk exclaimed.

With her money in hand Rynn left the blacksmith and back to the streets.

Despite her eagerness to give Arokh the rune, she had no idea where to find him. She ran to the palace knowing it would probably suit a humble dragon like Arokh.

When she entered the palace, only Zola Dana was to be found.

"Where is everyone?" Rynn enquired looking around the vast entrance hall.

"They will be along shortly, why don't you take a seat and wait for them?" Zola answered showing her to a small side room in which was a table and a couple of chairs. Rynn gratefully sat down and felt the relief of being off her feet. She noticed that she still had the swamp goo all over her and suddenly felt embarrassed at entering Lady Myschala's home in such a state.

It was quiet but she knew she was safe. Whilst she waited for her bonded to return, she leant forward and closed her eyes thinking of what she had just been through.

She was daydreaming to such an extent she didn't notice the dragon enter the room.

Arokh put his nose up close to Rynn, "HELLO RYNN!" he said in his booming voice.  
Despite his joke, the situation wasn't funny as Rynn reflexively put her sword to Arokh's snout. "Don't DO that. Damn dragon, I don't know where you've been, but I have had a hell of a morning, what with the Trogs, and whatever, and you not being here….."  
Arokh ignored her whining and just stared at the sword in Rynn's hand.

"Amazing discovery Rynn, Is that a sword of the order?" Arokh snatched it away from her and began to inspect it " I believe it is, why this will certainly have to go in my collection.

"Hey you give that back, I found that, it's mine." Only now did Rynn notice Lady Myschala, and the General. Quickly her mood turned from annoyance to embarrassment. "Oh, M' Lady, excuse my behaviour, but my dragon isn't exactly a prince."

Lady Myschala gave a sheepish smile and turned toward the door. "Make sure she comes to see me Arokh, after you give her the details on her NEXT assignment." As she walked off, The General turned to her. "Certainly THEY aren't going to be given authority over the new Order!" he protested.  
"Why what ever is wrong," The lady smiled. The General didn't understand her humour. "Certainly that wasn't knightly behaviour"  
"Oh General, She is in the middle of a lot of suffering, she has to have some normalcy sometime. She has lost her family, her village, that dragon is all she has left."  
"But they don't even like each other" stated the General.

"Haven't you ever had kids, She is behaving quite normal, Besides General, unless YOU would prefer to have gone into the swamps, we need her. Do not worry it is not a queen we need right now, it is a hero, I doubt she would enjoy political life anyway. For now we must tolerate her behaviour, For she must endure so much herself." Myschala stopped, ignoring the General's next question, and turned to look back at the two rogues. "Yes, It will be wonderful to have the dragons back, wonderful."

As Myschala left, Arokh got down to business, "So where is it?"  
"The cipher rune? Actually I couldn't find it."  
"WWHATT! Boomed the Dragon, for a minute looking genuinely fearful, that he may have to search for it himself.

"No silly, of course I've got it." Rynn grinned showing him the rune.  
"Rynn, you really shouldn't."  
"Quiet now, we cant digress Arokh, now tell me what I have to do next."

Rynn and Arokh grinned at each other for a moment then Arokh's expression turned more serious.  
"There is something I want to tell you Rynn. Lady Myschala and General Dherimon think you are a bit of a rouge and they seem to have the impression we do not like each other." Arokh said sternly.  
"What!" Rynn yelled angrily. "A rouge huh. Well, Ill show them how good I am given time. They are wrong." She paused for a moment then whispered "we do like each other don't we?"

Arokh jaws drew into a smile again. "Of course we do. But you should try and make an impression when we are in Lady Myschala's presence, as you can see, she seems to have got the wrong idea. She respects me but to be honest I agree with her; you can be stubborn and rude sometimes."

"I suppose so yes, I admit it. However, I am not used to fitting in with the rich and famous, you know where I come from. You were one of the most honoured dragons of the Order so you fit in well. I can see that. I don't really like Lady Myschala anyway - she is too stuck up and snooty." Rynn said in an irritated voice.

"I understand Rynn" Arokh said placing one of his front feet on her shoulder. "They are not so forgiving," he said nodding his head in the direction of Dherimon and Myschala who were heading back to the throne room.  
"Okay. Ill try to change my attitude" Rynn snapped. She sighed when she saw the dragon's expression which followed.  
"I guess they will be the leaders of this new Order." Rynn said bitterly. "The likes of you and me won't have a say in it" she continued.

"I will be one of the council members that rules the Order Rynn. So will you as you are bonded to me, Ill make sure of it. Don't worry about the future, things and feelings between us and our new allies will work out given time. We must avoid arguments and bad feeling between our possible future council members; after all this was what led to the original Order's downfall. Navaros fell out with the council and formed the Dark Union, he was evil, yes but similar things could happen here." Arokh said remembering the days of the Order and its eventual destruction.

"Yeah. Perhaps you are right" Rynn agreed, looking thoughtfully towards the hub gate, pondering their future.  
"Once the dragons of the Order come back, they will probably take my side for political matters. Furthermore, once I become a dragon lord, I will outrank all of the human inhabitants of this city. You see, the Order was ruled by four bonded dragon lords and one magi making the total number of council members to nine. We plan to have the same system of government for the New Order. Lady Myschala will not be the sole decision maker." Arokh laughed.  
Rynn smiled and turned her head to meet the dragon's stare. "Anyway, let's get these gates opened and then Ill go and get a change of clothes and a bath."

"If it only were so simple" the dragon said softly.

Rynn gave a puzzled look but Arokh quickly continued before she could speak. "I'm afraid the gates were closed and sealed from the other side, we would have to travel to them to re-open them."

"Well where are these gates?"

"Two gates are in the Northlands where ancient Meridia once stood and the others are to the south; I'd suggest going to the North first as they are closer." Arokh answered thoughtfully.

"So another series of long journeys then" Rynn said lowering her shoulders in disappointment. She thought she had had enough of traipsing around the world.

"Well, I'd agree on going to the North first" she continued. "I overheard a conversation earlier, two townsfolk were talking about the lands to the south; they are much more dangerous."

Arokh gave a little laugh and flashed his eyes then stared at her.

"I am unsure of how to get there though. There is an outpost in the Andrellian Isles; we must go there to search for a guide to Ravenshold which where the closest gate is" Arokh said sternly.  
Rynn looked down at the ground for a moment then looked into the dragon's eyes. "Sure. No problem."

Arokh nodded. "Well, Ill go and activate the hub gate on the other side of the palace whilst you are busy getting ready."

Arokh stepped back and absorbed the cipher rune into his body in a show of magical purple light and Rynn stepped back with surprise. "Ill meet you back here, Myschala would like to speak to you" he said and left the room.  
Slightly taken aback, Rynn left the palace without saying anything to Zola Dane or the guards and headed for the tavern to ask directions to the nearest shop which sold clothes.

Crossing the large Town Square, Rynn entered the city's tavern where the locals mixed with the knights to talk of their day's experiences. As the young woman walked down the main room towards the bar, she felt out of place. Her boots squelched slightly on the thick wooden floor and her appearance and smell certainly turned heads.

"I have not seen you before here Miss, are you one of the refugees?" the barman asked as she leant against it. "No. She is the dragonrider!" A young man spoke up before she could even answer. Rynn nodded seeing the barman's face. "You are in a bit of a state to say you are the dragon's bonded" he pointed out noting her swamp goo covered clothes.  
Rynn gave a bittersweet smile. "You bet. Could you tell me where I can get a change of clothes around here?" She asked, hoping she would be pointed in the right direction; she didn't want to keep Arokh waiting.

"Yes, follow the street around to the left, there is a place where you can buy leathers and boots. Pretty cheap as well" the barman grinned exposing his yellow, broken teeth.  
"Thanks" Rynn mumbled and began to head for the door but the barman called her back. "Miss, Do you want something to eat? It's on the house."  
Rynn paused for a moment and walked back to the bar. "In my state? Well, if you insist, that would be nice, yes. Bring me an ox meat sandwich" she said sitting down at a table. Shortly she was joined by a man who seemed to be extremely worried about something.  
"Excuse me, but could I have a word?" the man said placing his elbows on the table.  
"Yes, I'm all ears" Rynn muttered.

"I could do with your assistance. You see, there is a problem over at the Brother's of the Word monastery. They preserve ancient texts and books which are vital to the understanding of Drakan's history; some of the texts are thousands of years old. You see, the dead are coming back" he said quickly and quietly as if he didn't want anyone else to hear.  
Rynn raised an eyebrow in interest. "You mean undead? And these are destroying the books?"  
"Yes, exactly. But its more than that; the monks who do the work are slowly being killed. There is a crypt under the monastery and there are skeletons coming out and attacking anyone they meet!"

Rynn looked up as a maid brought the sandwich. She took a bite and swallowed. "Sounds like the work of the Dark Union. Lady Myschala mentioned some old enemies coming back. Ill check it out before I go on to the Andrellian Isles if its OK with my dragon."  
The man nodded and got up to leave. "You should find the monastery to the east just out of town. You can't miss it," he said as he walked out of the tavern.

Rynn finished her sandwich and headed to the shops the barman had mentioned. Half an hour later, Rynn was equipped with a new outfit, funded by the money she stole from the Trogs. She made sure she bought the best money could buy; she had to get something in return after all.

"Ah, glad to see you" Myschala said as she noticed Rynn walking up to her, she was busy reading some ancient books and taking notes. Rynn craned her neck to see but what Myschala was writing did not seem to make sense to her.  
"Ahem. Please can you stand away a little?" she coughed putting her hands over her mouth. Rynn stepped away noticing that her smell was not particularly pleasant to the noble woman.  
"What do you want to see me about?" Rynn asked putting the bag of clothes onto the floor.  
"I guess Arokh has told you about Ravenshold?" Myschala started.  
Rynn's face remained blank. Myschala sighed. "I guess he didn't explain very well. Okay, the city of Ravenshold is where the closest gate is. There, you will find allies known to us as the Northmen; their leader, Ranwolfe will help you get to the first and second gates."

Rynn nodded. "Arokh did mention Ravenshold but he didn't mention about Ranwolfe. He said we had to search for a guide in the Andrellian Isles as he has forgotten the way" she informed.  
"You must hurry Rynn. Don't forget to speak to Ranwolfe before you go around the city; you might be mistaken as foes." Myschala advised.  
"I'm not going anywhere without a bath" Rynn grumbled.  
Lady Myschala laughed and waved one of the knights to come over. "Take Rynn to the bathing room." she commanded. The knight nodded and began to walk away.  
"This way Madam" he said turning his head to see where Rynn was. Rynn picked up her new clothes and followed.

A short time later, Rynn emerged from the bathing rooms refreshed and clean. Her new boots needed wearing in; she had forgotten to buy some stockings and the bare leather was uncomfortable against her feet and ankles.  
"Rynn. You took your time" Arokh growled when he saw her walk up to him. She ignored his remark and climbed onto his back. "Come on Arokh, let's go," she said. Arokh did not need to be told twice; he began to walk out of the palace with Rynn upon his back, the doors closing behind them with a loud crash.  
Once they were on the bridge, Rynn decided to ask her bonded about the undead creatures. "Arokh, could we call by the monastery? A man in the tavern mentioned the undead coming back, possibly the work of the Dark Union." Rynn said hastily remembering what the man had told her.

There was a long silence then eventually Arokh answered. "Very well, we will check it out, but we don't want to spend too long. The opening of the gates are our priority."  
"Thankyou" Rynn mumbled and began to sort her weapons whilst on the dragon's back. She had bought a Mithril longsword when she was in town and she took the time to examine her new weapon whilst they headed out of the city into the wilderness.  
"Hang on Rynn. There are blackwings nearby, I can smell them" Arokh suddenly said stopping to hover for a moment.  
Rynn looked where the dragon's head was pointing and saw two black specks about a mile away. "Smell them? From that far away?" she said surprised.

"I have an acute sense of smell" Arokh grunted.  
"Really? If you can smell another dragon's body odour from a mile away, surely your own smell would drown it out." Rynn pointed out.  
Arokh landed outside a cave entrance and roasted a Grull who was standing outside. "What are you trying to say?" He snorted, with some anger in his voice.

"I was just wondering how you could smell something as far away when there are stronger smells nearby." Rynn informed realising she had offended the dragon.  
"Well, I don't have body odour if that's what you are implying." He bent his neck down to smell his feet. "Nope. They don't smell either, I've recently had a bath and a massage." The dragon continued with a slight smile lifting his neck back up to see where the blackwings were.

"A massage huh? Well I can see you have been pampered whilst I was gone" Rynn said with a hint of disgust; whilst she was wading through stinking mud, Arokh was having massage oil rubbed on him - no comparison to what she had to endure.  
Arokh grinned "I enjoyed it."  
"I _bet_ you did. I bet it was a few young women who did it as well. Furthermore, you seem to have taken a shine to Lady Myschala." Rynn snapped seeing the dragon's expression as his great head turned round to see her.  
"It wasn't actually. It was one of Myschala's servants. I recommended him as a dragon groom. As for Myschala, I have to get on with our possible future council members."

Rynn sighed and smiled at the dragon. "Well, just remember, you bad boy. You are mine. I know you like to be the centre of attention but just remember me will you?"

"Okay I will" the dragon smiled. Rynn gave a sheepish look. "Anyway, talking baths; I thought it was the bonded's job to bathe their dragon."  
Arokh shuffled about and scratched his side to remove an annoying itch. "It is normally. However, dragon lords and other high ranking dragons get the upper class treatment."  
"But you are not a dragon lord... Yet" Rynn pointed out.

"I will be soon. Anyway, back to smells, all dragons have a smell which can usually only be detected by another dragon species. It's a bit like humans for example. Its for selecting a mate or whatever; you should know what I mean" Arokh continued to explain.  
Rynn jumped down from the dragon's neck and stood by his side. "Yeah I know. Remember Arokh, anytime you want a massage, I'd be more than happy to do it for you." Rynn said softly kissing his side.  
The dragon's head turned to face her observing with his sparkling red eyes. He fell silent; he knew the human's feelings for him. He also knew that her feelings would probably be temporary; perhaps once Rynn had overcome her tragic loss and made new friends, she would not be so clingy towards him.

Rynn understood through the dragon's facial expression alone and decided to leave it at that. She turned around and walked up to the cave. "Ill just see what's in here, won't be long," she said running into the cave.  
Arokh grunted in reply and laid down on the grass, his front legs folded underneath his neck with his head resting on his front feet. He watched the skies, keeping an eye open to see if the blackwings would attack. He wondered for a moment if they would be successful; He knew Rynn was an excellent warrior and he didn't doubt himself but altogether, his hopes were high. He thought Rynn was okay but he thought she was a little selfish sometimes. He certainly would not let her stop him from mating with another dragon; after all the race of Elder Breed dragons are just as much endangered as humans are.

Ten minutes passed and Arokh was getting impatient. Eventually, Rynn emerged from the cave with a broad grin upon her face.  
"Find anything?" The dragon asked getting to his feet.  
"Yeah, money, a shortsword and an invisibility potion" Rynn said holding out some of the items to show the dragon. "Useful. Come on, let's go and find that monastery."

Arokh travelled east taking out the two blackwings patrolling the skies east of the city. Any wartocks that had set up camp outside the city walls were turned to ash in seconds. Arokh's breath weapons that he gained during the journey to defeat Navaros had worn off leaving him only with his natural flame. The camp locations were easily given away by the plumes of smoke from the campfires; the dragon's eyes picking them out against the expanse of green grass below them.

"Down there, Arokh! I want to see what's in there" Rynn shouted, her voice slightly muffled due to the wind.  
Arokh looked down and saw a small cave entrance. "_Must she investigate every cave we come across_?" the dragon thought to himself as he landed on a natural bridge letting Rynn off to investigate. She found nothing in the small cave apart from a chest containing gold which would come in handy; it wasn't a total waste of time.  
As she left the cave entrance, she saw several Grull a couple of hundred meters away running over to attack. Some of them had arrows and one whizzed past her ear. One even hurled fireballs at her; even Grull could manage a bit of basic magic she thought.  
"Arokh. Behind you!" she yelled warning the dragon of the ambush he was unaware of.

Rynn readied her bow and took out one of the Grull but the other one within firing range was hidden behind Arokh. "Arokh, could you step aside?" She yelled at the scaled beast.  
Arokh flew upwards into the air and began taking out the rest of the small group with his flame breath, Rynn decided to run straight at the nearest Grull, the Earthblade outstretched. Searing balls of flame rained down from above as the Grull scurried all over the place trying to avoid them.

"Get out of the way!" Arokh snarled angrily when he saw that Rynn was too close. "Its kind of difficult at the moment" Rynn mumbled swinging her sword around slicing the creature's head off with one hit from the Earthblade. Arokh landed nearby and walked up to his bonded.  
"That wasn't so hard," he said as he scratched the underneath of his head. "Come on. I can see the monastery from here. With a bit of luck, there should be no more surprises."

Rynn mounted Arokh but he did not bother to fly the short distance to the monastery, choosing to walk down the short path instead. Rynn swayed from side to side slightly as he walked, she could feel his powerful muscles working with each step.  
Ahead, two men were sweeping the path where it changed from mud to stone. Another was sweeping the large stone patio in front of the monastery, none of them seemed to notice the large dragon walking up to them.

"Excuse me, I need to pass" Arokh said to the nearest man. The man looked up at the dragon and some fear showed in his eyes but he did not speak.  
"I said excuse me!" Arokh said again in a louder tone.  
"Are you deaf or stupid? Get out of my way!" He snarled when the man did not move, Arokh could not get around as the path was between two small rocky mounds.  
Rynn patted the dragon on the neck informing Arokh of the situation. "They are monks, Arokh. They probably have taken a vow of silence; they are not allowed to speak to no-one."  
Arokh glared at the man. "Perhaps, but he should still be able to understand me." He sighed in exasperation and roughly pushed the monk aside.

The red dragon walked up to the imposing stone building; it looked very old, perhaps as old as Surdana itself. "Interesting place" Arokh noted as he looked around at the intricately carved detail on the stones. Rynn hopped off and began to walk up to the door. "Ill go on in and see what's up."  
"Okay. But be careful; if it's true what you said earlier, there could be great evil lurking in there." Arokh said quietly, deeply concerned for his bonded.  
"Ill be fine" Rynn smiled and ran inside.

The young warrior was greeted by a large entrance hall and beyond that a room full of books. One monk was looking through them but he did not speak, instead he waved a finger over at a table where a older man sat on a chair reading.  
"Ahem. I am Rynn; I believe you have a problem with skeletons?" She asked.  
The man stood up from the table and shut the book he was reading. "Ah, I see my message has reached Surdana" he said placing the book into his pocket.  
"I'm sorry. Please let me introduce myself; I am the Grand Savant of this place. It's stood here for almost 800 years, built during the days of the Order." There was a long silence and Rynn was becoming impatient.

"Well, why do you want me here" she asked.  
The man sat down on the chair and observed her thoughtfully. "There is a crypt under the floor. But the problem is the dead monks are coming back, poor souls. It's ghastly. We don't know how or why they have been awakened from the dead but it must be stopped at all costs; they have killed many of my monks." Another pause. "I will give you 1000 gold if you can put an end to it."

Rynn thought for a moment then gave her reply. "Well, 1000 gold is a fine reward but I can't promise anything. Ill check it out for you."  
The Savant smiled. "Go through the door there and see Brother Alto. He will let you into the crypt."  
Rynn nodded and walked into the next room, also full of books. A man greeted her as she walked in.  
"Ah. I am Brother Alto, what brings you here?" He asked, bowing to her with his hands clasped.  
"I am here to investigate the trouble down below" Rynn said nodding to the crypt entrance.  
"Ah, good. Do you want to read some of our books? We have subjects on just about everything that has happened in the world during the last 4000 years. The thing that fascinates me the most is the Order; imagine that - flying on the back of a dragon! There was one around yesterday, Arokh I think they called him. A fascinating and intelligent creature. A pleasure to talk to."

Rynn grinned and told him who she was. "Yeah, I know. I'm his rider"  
Alto looked surprised for a moment. "So you are the one. Well, I put my trust into you to resolve our crisis and I hope your quest is a success. The Order's rule - the Golden Age as it was known, only lasted around 400 years. I hope the new Order lives for much longer."  
"I hope so too" Rynn smiled and turned towards the crypt door which swung open.  
"Good luck down there and don't forget to browse our library when you are done" Alto wished as he pressed the switch to light the torches in the crypt.  
Rynn nodded and began to descend down the cobweb-infested stairs, not knowing what was in store for her.

With that Rynn left the comfort of the majestic library and into the dark catacombs. Luckily there were torches lit all around to provide light and safety, which gave Rynn a bit of relief. Upon coming down the dim hall there was a tomb to the left, which made Rynn curious. Rynn started to slowly approach the tomb when the top of the tomb burst off into the air. A skeleton with glowing eyes rotated its head to where Rynn was and crept out of its grave. The possessed brother took an axe and slowly came to Rynn momentarily in shock with the sight. Rynn took to her closest weapon and sliced the skeleton in two.

Leaving the tomb Rynn continued down the hall in search of what caused the dead monks to resurrect. As Rynn walked down a long hallway fear started to creep up her back. Suddenly skeletons charged from the walls in attack. This startled Rynn as the skeletons tried to surround her. She took out two weapons; one in each hand and battled both sides of her dispatching all the reborn skeletons.

After her victory a sudden chill passed the hallway and a wispy voice passed putting out all the torches in the hall. Rynn knew more tricks were about and she did not like the looks of things. Rynn started to run when one last skeleton approached her for a fight but only to loose. After the battle Rynn had caught something at the edge of her eye. There was a lever along with a few healing potions. Rynn took the potions and put them in her backpack with the others and pulled the lever. The sounds of a gate opening filled the halls making Rynn wonder where the sound came from. Controlling her senses the warrior looked beyond a corner to find metal gates opening. Rynn advanced and as she did she had noticed a large room and paused.

Exploring the room at the start Rynn noticed four tombs, two at the right and left. Expecting of what might come, Rynn took one of weapons she found at the Grull camps to fight this small battle. Each skeleton emerged out of their resting places wanting to kill any living being. Rynn made the battle quick and finished off all that was in the room. After her fight there was a stairway that led down and at the same time Rynn noticed a large fissure in the ground where there had been a landslide at one point. Rynn met the fissure at the bottom of the stairs looking downward. "There's no way I'll survive a fall like that," she told herself. Backing up to make a run and jump for it, Rynn was just about to leap, when a quake erupted. Rynn shrivelled into a ball hoping nothing would hit her during the quake. When the quake had finished Rynn opened her eyes and sighed in dismay. The quake had made the large hole on the ground wider and hard to reach the other side. Rynn scanned the edges looking for a small place for her to jump towards. At last there was a spot that the quake barely touched. Rynn prepared herself ready to make her move and leapt.

Rynn nearly stumbled when her keen senses kicked in and she quickly grabbed the edge just in time. Her rusty sword that she had found fell and down towards the bottom of the hole, as it hit the stones and rocks, metallic clanging noises were given off getting quieter and quieter as it got closer to the bottom. Rynn sighed and pulled herself up to the top. Catching her breath the warrior took to a door that lay at the other side. Down the hall there was a fork, and Rynn took a path that lead to a room with fire torches.

The room looked very suspicious as if there was some sort of puzzle. Rynn inspected all around but found nothing. Rynn thought that the fire was merely nothing and approached an open door. As Rynn got close the door closed shut, a trap! Turning around Rynn saw the pillars of fire go out one by one leaving no lighting whatsoever. This worried Rynn, she knew whatever came at her had the upper hand. The floor rumbled as skeletons came out and pushed themselves off the ground. This became difficult for Rynn, for she could only see the dark glow of their eyes. Using this to her best Rynn went for the fight. The fight seemed endless as more skeletons came from every part of the room. The skeletons started to surround Rynn, and clashed their weapons upon Rynn's chain mail. Rynn became tired of this fight and drew out her Earth Blade that gave some lighting around her. She called upon the magic of the blade that sent a green force swallowing all that was around her up into the ground. The door opened revealing a new path to take. Rynn took a breath and grabbed a potion to heal herself from her injuries. "That was a tough struggle," Rynn said as she wiped her mouth. "I just hope Arokh is alright."

Feeling rejuvenated Rynn approached the next room. The room seemed more forgiving than the last for torches of blue flame were on the walls giving plenty of light. Tombs were around the perimeter and Rynn knew what to expect. Luckily only one skeleton came at a time, giving Rynn an easy time for her fight. After all was done there was yet another small quake, but this did not scare Rynn. The quake sub sided as Rynn saw that the floor of the next room was partially collapsed. Rynn dropped herself to what part of the floor was stable and jumped from piece to piece to the next door.

Rynn entered the next chamber in the underground catacombs but something set the hairs on the back of her neck upright; somehow, something didn't seem right. Suspended from the high ceiling on meat hooks were a good 30 human corpses in various stages of decomposition. The chamber was eerily quiet with blood stained marble walls and Rynn stepped forward carefully looking out for any traps. Just as she half expected, the gate behind her crashed shut locking her in the room awaiting whatever killed the men and women hanging from the ceiling.

An ethereal wind brushed up around the room bringing with it the dust that had settled on the floor. Rynn readied the Earthblade just as a skeleton wearing thick plates of armour rose up from the floor in front of her. In its bony hand was a long sword wreathed in flames. Rynn stood there for a moment paralysed with fear then the undead creature spoke breaking the silence.

"Ahh, another human to grace my lair. You would make a fine warrior with weapons like that but your flesh is weak. If we were to strip away the flesh, we would reveal the strong bones underneath. Come to me let me convert you." It said in a surprisingly gentle voice as if it was trying to coax Rynn.  
"Who are you?" Rynn questioned taking the opportunity to ask before she destroyed the being.  
"I have no name but I serve Gothraul, Lord of the Dead" it said quietly.  
"Well, your lord will be bitterly disappointed in you. Its time you were sent back to your grave!" Rynn snarled under her breath lunging at the undead creature damaging some of its bones.

The skeleton retaliated but Rynn was too quick for it, using her agility and speed to avoid the searing flame of the sword it was carrying.  
"Why do you fight? Let me make you strong" it continued, trying to persuade Rynn to stand there and be killed. Rynn just laughed and hit the creature again smashing off one of its arms, the shield it was holding clattering to the ground. Undeterred, the skeleton continued to attack but it was now defenceless down one side. Rynn took advantage of this, continually circling her foe and hitting the unprotected side cutting away at the bones.  
Eventually, the skeleton's legs gave way and it crumpled to the floor in a pile of bones uttering a faint "Why?" before it dematerialised and was gone.

Rynn walked over and took the sword it was carrying. It looked incredibly sharp and was wreathed in magical flames whenever it was in her hand. "This will definitely come in handy" she remarked, as she was about to put it away. Something caught her eye however; two skeletons had grown out of the floor and were coming to attack. Rynn whipped the new found flamestrike sword around destroying both of them in one hit. "Phew" she muttered and walked around the chamber looting any chests she came across, taking their contents of gold and the occasional health potion.

"_I think that's it. Now to find the way out_" she thought as she looked around for another exit as the door was still locked. "There!" she said out aloud spotting the purple glow of a teleporter in one corner of the chamber. She ran over and stepped on it finding herself back in a room at the bottom of the stairs leading back up to the monastery. Breathing a sigh of relief, she ran back up and returned to Brother Alto.

"Ah, I see you have returned. What did you find down there?" He asked.  
Rynn sat down on a chair at the table, she was glad of the rest. "It was a bone lord or something. Said he served Gothraul?" Rynn said placing her backpack on the table.  
"Gothraul!" Brother Alto said alarmed. Rynn looked at him with concern; this Gothraul was obviously somebody or something terrible.  
Alto noticed the look on her face and began to explain. "Gothraul is lord of the ghouls. He has lived for thousands of years if you could call him living - actually he is an undead being, the remains of a powerful necromancer who lived a few thousand years ago. Navaros tried to seek his assistance once but failed, Gothraul favours neither the Order or the Dark Union but he is a dangerous adversary nevertheless."

"I would guess he has something to do with the Desert Lords" Rynn said thoughtfully.  
Brother Alto looked up from across the table. "I think you are right. It would certainly explain the undead coming back recently. As far as I know Gothraul has been keeping himself hidden for centuries but he has always existed. It's most probable that the Desert Lords have struck a deal with him; Gothraul has always worked on his own and never allied with anyone. He won't do anything unless there is something in it for him."

Rynn nodded and got up to leave. "Thanks for letting me know, perhaps we may come across Gothraul on our way to the gates. We will be careful and with luck destroy him."  
"Farewell Rynn. Remember, if you want to read up on any of Drakan's history, please visit us again" Alto suggested.  
"I will" Rynn said as she left to collect her reward from the Grand Savant.

Arokh was waiting outside as usual; he looked relieved when he saw his friend. "Did you succeed?" He asked in his loud booming voice.  
Rynn mounted the dragon and made herself comfortable. "Its Gothraul behind all of this. I defeated the Bone Lord in the catacombs but it seems there are more serious problems." Rynn explained.  
Arokh snorted in disgust. "I thought he was dead. Gothraul was..."  
"I know. Brother Alto told me all about him" Rynn interrupted.  
Arokh fell silent and he turned around to walk back up the path leading away from the ancient monastery.  
"Have you been here before?" Rynn asked remembering Brother Alto had spoke to Arokh yesterday.

"Yes. I came yesterday" Arokh snapped, clearly angered by Rynn interrupting him.  
"Funny, you didn't seem to know the way here," Rynn said quietly.  
Arokh snorted again. "I know exactly were I am going."  
"But you don't know your way to Ravenshold" Rynn pointed out.  
Arokh began to fill with rage but took a moment to let himself calm down before he answered.  
"I forgot. I can't be expected to remember my way to everywhere in the world. Now, come on lets go to the Andrellian Isles to find a guide."

Chapter Sixteen: Unexpected Weather 

"Now much further is it?" Rynn asked after they had been flying about 10 minutes. The coastline was just disappearing below them giving way to a vast ocean.  
"Its not far now" Arokh replied turning sharply to the left. "This way".  
"What exactly are these gates Arokh and what are they used for?" Rynn asked while the opportunity presented itself; the sea was quiet and they did not come under attack.

Arokh was silent for a moment then he began to explain. "The Order of the Flame built a large network of gates around the world that allowed instant travel between them. They were typically placed in or near large cities so the bonded could come at a moments notice." There was a long pause and he continued. "The gates consist of a hub and four to eight satellite gates with the hub gates linked to other hubs. It's rather a complex system but easy enough once you get to know it. To travel from one satellite gate to another, you have to go via the hub as you cannot travel directly from one to another."

Rynn nodded but the dragon could not see her sat upon his back. "So what about the Dragon Mother? She went through the Mother's Eye" Rynn asked.  
Another long pause. "The hub gate in Surdana was referred to as the Mother's Eye after the Dark Wars. It was converted to serve one extra purpose; a link way to the spiritual planes which is where the Mother Dragon is at the moment. Restoring the link will enable her to return but all of its satellite gates must be activated for it to work." The red dragon explained.

The weather was rapidly changing; strong winds blew up and rain began to fall. "There is a storm coming" Arokh noted as he summoned up more strength to fly through the wind which was becoming more violent.  
"Is that where the dragons of the Order are - in the spiritual planes?" Rynn asked over the rising storm.  
"No, they are sleeping in their lairs or caves - if they are lucky. I would imagine some were stolen and used as decoration statues or whatever. No matter, they will be awakened if _we_ are lucky."

Finally, after a long battle through the strong winds, land could be seen below. Arokh began a steep decent towards a small encampment on the nearest island, his sharp eyes checking for any foes before finally landing in the middle of the camp.

Both of them looked briefly around the makeshift camp consisting of several leather tents and a couple of rickety wooden towers, one of which had a revolving light pushed round by the wind - a temporal lighthouse. Several weary looking men were dotted around, most of them sheltering from the rain in the tents and two were stood on the deck of a nearby ship. Light came from the bridge of the ship and its portals indicating that there was probably more inside. The men were a motley crew, obviously traders or pirates that had stopped by the isles.

"You there! Who is in charge here?" Arokh growled at a nearby man dressed in dirty and torn clothes glaring at him with his piercing red eyes. Rynn dismounted and went up to introduce herself.  
The man did not see Rynn, his eyes were fixed on the dragon partially paralysed with fear.  
"W..What?" he stammered.  
"Who is in charge here?" Rynn repeated Arokh's question, the man turning round to see her eyeing her with surprise. "Don't worry, Arokh here won't harm you" she said noticing the man's expression.  
The man waved his arm towards a cave behind him. "Master Sevoth is in there but he is weak, like most of us, almost on our deathbeds" he remarked sadly.

"We are looking for a guide to Ravenshold. Can you tell me where I could find one?" Arokh asked sharply.  
"Yes, we were heading to Ravenshold ourselves but there is the problem of the storms."  
"Storms?" Arokh asked looking up at the sky. "Why would that be a problem, just wait till they pass."  
"They won't pass. You see, there is a shaman who calls himself Bonegrinder. He is behind these storms, his lair is to the North and that is presumably from where they are controlled. We have been stuck here for two weeks now and our supplies have almost run dry. He uses the storms to trap ships so he can loot them, once a ship enters the storms they cannot leave. Even you cannot leave." The man explained.

Rynn and Arokh looked at each other briefly and Arokh gave a sarcastic snort. "We will see about that."  
"No, the storm is too powerful. You are trapped here." The man continued sitting down on a tree stump pulling out a pipe. "My last bit of Tobacco" he mumbled.  
"Well, I don't fancy spending the rest of my life here; we will see what we can do about this Bonegrinder. For now we had better see your master..."  
"Incoming!" Another man yelled cutting Rynn short in mid conversation as a few flaming balls of tar crashed into the encampment killing him outright.

Rynn looked in the direction of the attack and saw several catapults across the bay getting ready to fire another barrage of missiles.  
"Say, you don't think that beast of yours could destroy those catapults could you?" The man who they saw first asked, suddenly remembering that Dragons could breathe fire.  
Rynn was about to answer but Arokh interrupted her. "Ill take care of them. Rynn go and see Master Sevoth. Ill meet you here afterwards."  
Rynn didn't bother to argue and began to head towards the cave but first she stopped by a couple of tents to speak to the other stranded sailors for information but they didn't have much to say or offer.  
Shortly, Arokh landed beside her folding his wings to his side. "Did you see Sevoth?" He asked.  
"Not yet" Rynn answered flatly. "I thought I'd see what was out here first."

One of the sailors spoke up. "That dragon is a stinking miracle; the way he cut through those catapults was astounding. I feel like kissing the damn thing."  
Arokh turned his great head towards the sailor and eyed him up and down noticing his filthy clothes. "I'd rather you didn't," he said with a sarcastic smile.  
The sailor's eyes looked down at the dragon's feet noticing the ring around one toe and the bracelet around his ankle. "Is that bracelet gold?" He asked. Arokh grinned slightly. "Yes. Pure gold."  
"How much would you sell it for? If I were to resell, it would fetch a fair bit of money in the east when we next visit" the sailor continued.  
Arokh gave a laugh. "It's not for sale. Rynn, lets find Master Sevoth now, we don't want to waste time."

"Yeah. Good idea, I'm soaked to the bone already" Rynn replied. She began to head back to the cave with Arokh following closely behind her, sinking up to his ankles in places in the soggy ground.  
"Ill go on inside. Wait here" Rynn said to the dragon and disappeared into the cave. A long tunnel led downwards slightly and was lit by torches stuck into the ground at various intervals. The shelter of the cave offered some relief from the driving rain outside.  
Eventually, the path opened out to a junction; to the left was a small cave filled with barrels and to the right several human voices drifted through the air.

"Hello there!" Rynn said walking into the cave. A couple of men glanced up from where they sat upon barrels and crates. Chickens ran free around the cave and a fire burned in the centre of the cave, the smoke drifting up through a makeshift chimney in the roof.  
"Another victim of the storms I see" one of the men said.  
Rynn strolled over to the fire and looked at the man who had just been speaking to her.  
"Forgive me. I am Sevoth, leader of this motley crew. You are?" He asked introducing himself.  
"Rynn. I came here looking for a guide to Ravenshold" The young woman answered.

Sevoth laughed and drew a long breath on his pipe. "Captain Fandril knows the way; he will be aboard his ship outside but he won't be of much help. We are trapped here you see".  
Rynn was a little impatient not to mention cold and wet. "Yes, one of your men told me all about Bonegrinder."  
Sevoth laughed again. "Aye, he is an evil little bastard that's for sure but he is very powerful. We don't have the resources or manpower to defeat him."  
Rynn shook her head. "You seem to give up too easily. I want to have a try at defeating him; is there anything I should know about?"

There was a long silence and one of the men left the cave sniggering to himself. Rynn threw an angry glance at him and turned back to Sevoth.  
"Well?" She snapped.  
Master Sevoth began to stroke his beard, grown over the past two weeks he had been stranded there. "Bonegrinder has many Wartocks protecting him. If you did manage to get into his lair, he wears a helmet making him invulnerable but it has one weakness. You see, there are three crystals powering the helmet, if these were destroyed he will become vulnerable."  
"Hmm. is that easy?" Rynn asked.  
"I know a way. I can teach you a spell; to be able to cast lightning, you can use it to destroy the crystals" Sevoth replied thoughtfully.  
Interested, Rynn took up the offer and sat closer to Sevoth to learn the first bit of elemental magic she never knew she was capable of learning.

"No, No. Like this" Sevoth said calmly as he drew the outline of a rune with his hand, it immediately wreathed in a blue light.  
Rynn repeated the action thinking of lightning as hard as she could and to her surprise a ball of blue light appeared in her hand. She grinned at Sevoth. "I got it"  
"About time. Now, aim at that crate over there and think of destroying it" Sevoth instructed. Rynn obeyed and a bolt of lightning shot from her hand smashing into the crate shattering it into tiny burnt fragments.  
"I never thought I'd be able to do such things" Rynn remarked surprised at the destruction she had caused just with the power of her mind and the movement of her hand.

Sevoth smiled broadly. "I appreciate your efforts to kill Bonegrinder. Good luck for the sake of all of us" he said more or less indicating he wanted to be alone. "I will" Rynn said and left the cave.  
"Hey, you wanna buy?" A voice came from behind. Rynn swivelled round on the heel of her foot and saw a scruffy man in the back cave sat by a large collection of weapons and potions.  
Rynn went up to the 'shop' and carefully looked over the items. "These are for sale?" She asked.  
"Yeah, Yeah, yes. Olag sell." The scruffy man said excitedly. He seemed a bit of a half-wit but Rynn continued to talk with him.  
"I'm Rynn. Ill take this," she said picking up a suit of scale armour and putting it on.  
"1500 gold" Olag grumbled.  
"Fair price, here" Rynn replied offering Olag a couple of coins; one 1000 and one 500.  
"Olag make sale" he laughed. "Hey, you pretty, you come back."

"Er, yeah." Rynn said slowly making for the door. Suddenly she thought of something; she wasn't wearing any socks and her feet were cold and becoming blistered. "Do you have any stockings?" She asked.  
"Nothing like stock...ing" Olag replied. "I have club. Club... good."  
Rynn sighed in dismay and exasperation and left the cave system meeting Arokh outside.

"Hey Arokh, look what I learnt" Rynn said showing the dragon her new abilities. Arokh looked on amazed. "Stop showing off" he laughed. "Lets get going."  
"Absolutely, come on, I need to see Captain Fandril then we can pay Bonegrinder a visit" Rynn suggested running over towards the large boat docked nearby. Arokh hovered in the air ready to protect her from harm if the need should arise.

Rynn boarded the newly built vessel, a large and sturdy ship. It looked like a cargo ship as a large trapdoor was in the middle of the deck obviously used for loading. A lone man stood at the helm looking out across the stormy sea, wondering if his ship would ever leave the isles.  
"Excuse me, I'm looking for Captain Fandril" Rynn asked tapping the man on the shoulder to get his attention.  
"That'll be me then" he said with a smile.  
"I understand you know the way to Ravenshold" Rynn shouted over the rising wind. She wiped the rainwater from her face and held onto a nearby wooden post to steady herself.  
"Come inside, it will be easier to talk" Captain Fandril beckoned leading the young woman to the bridge.

"Sit down" he continued waving to a chair at a table on which several charts and maps lay strewn across it. The door closed behind them with a loud thump and for once the sound of the storm died down. Rynn could feel warmth from a stove that burnt in one corner of the room lit by candles on the walls and tables. She shivered and looked across the table where Fandril seated himself.  
"You are the dragonrider? The dragon told me about you" he informed.  
"He did, did he?" Rynn said with a hint of sarcasm. "Then he told you of our purpose here."  
Fandril nodded and took a sip of a warm beverage from a mug on the table, pushing it towards Rynn who gratefully accepted took a couple of mouthfuls.

"Two of my men escaped last night with the charts showing the way. You see we are from the south; it's our first time to these lands. My men are traitors, they wanted to strike a deal with Bonegrinder's troops but I doubt if they were successful. I'm afraid I need those plans back to continue." Fandril explained. Rynn's shoulders sank. "Any idea where they are?" She asked hopefully.  
"There are a few caves dotted about these isles, I'd try the nearest ones first; my men can't have gone far." Fandril said taking another sip from the mug Rynn placed in the middle of the table. She glanced out of the thick glass windows at the view outside and looked back at the captain.

Feeling that this would be the only way out, Rynn agreed. "Okay, Ill see what I can do. Leave it to me and my dragon."  
With that, she left the warmth of the ship's cabin and returned to the shore.  
"Arokh!" She shouted wondering where the red beast had got to. Eventually he showed up and landed in front of her stretching his muscles with a loud satisfying snarl. He looked at his bonded and blinked. "Lets get going!" He growled dipping to let the human on his back.

"Where to?" Arokh asked after they had been flying for a couple of minutes. Rynn scanned the shores of the small islands looking for caves and fissures in the rocks in search of a place to answer the dragon's question.

"Captain Fandril said a couple of his men had escaped with the charts detailing the way to Ravenshold. They want to strike a deal with Bonegrinder or something. We should look for a cave" Rynn suggested.  
Arokh grunted in reply noticing a couple of old wooden ships docked by a large island. The ships were typical of Wartock ship design, basic but serving their purpose reliably. A campfire could be made out with several Grull sitting around it, two Wartocks were patrolling the shores, their large axes held firmly in their hands.

"That looks interesting" he pointed out beginning his decent towards the camp. Just then a fireball came hurtling towards them seemingly from the Wartocks below. "What was that?" Arokh grunted as he evaded the projectile, missing it by a few centimetres.  
"The Wartocks have learnt a bit of magic it seems" Rynn said.  
"Oh so you know about them? Oh well... damn another one" the dragon snarled as a fireball hit him in the chest causing some burning but the thick scales offering a degree of protection.

Arokh swooped down even further flying over the two wartocks breathing a cloud of flame as he did incinerating them. He landed and let Rynn jump off. "Ashes to ashes" he said nodding his head in the direction of the two still smoking corpses. Rynn just laughed and ran over to the campfire to kill the cowering Grull and taking their hoard of gold.  
The rain lashed down pummelling the top of Rynn's head and lightning flashed across the sky. The storm seemed to be getting worse but it could just have been Rynn's imagination as well.

"Look Rynn, a cave" Arokh shouted noticing a small opening in the towering wall of rock that made up the island. "Come on" he beckoned as he made his way into the cave, Rynn following behind.  
Once inside, the faint smell of sulphur drifted in the air and it was notably warm; volcanic activity was nearby. Rynn wiped the rainwater from her face and shivered with the cold water that had soaked her clothes. "I'm glad to be out of that" she grumbled.  
"So am I" Arokh added, thankful of the shelter of the cave. His eyes stared into the tunnel that led from the cave; it narrowed a bit making it impossible for him to squeeze through but small enough for Rynn.  
"This seems to be the only Grull camp we have come across so far. Hopefully the charts will be in here" Rynn said, her voice echoing in the dimly lit cave.  
"With luck, yes. Rynn step aside!" Arokh shouted noticing a Wartock coming up from behind Rynn. She looked around fearfully and dived underneath the dragon just as he unleashed a cloud of flame burning the Wartock to ash in seconds. Crawling out from underneath the dragon, Rynn patted him on the side of his neck showing her thanks. "I wish you could come with me" she said. "It will be difficult on my own."

Arokh nodded. "You will be fine. Go on, Ill be waiting here" he smiled giving her a gentle push towards the inside of the cave. Rynn took the Earthblade into her hands and carefully crept deeper into the cave.

As Rynn got deeper, it became warmer and the smell of sulphur was more obnoxious. A deep semi circular cavern was at the end of the tunnel, the bottom of which covered with a layer of boiling, bubbling lava. A path went around the top of the cavern and the ruins of some temple lay half submerged in the lava down below. Something glittered down there and Rynn carefully made her way down the steep slope towards the ruins taking care to avoid the edge. She put her hand over her mouth and ran to collect the shiny object; it was an invulnerability potion, she now had two of these. "Very useful" she mumbled to herself and returned to the end of the tunnel path.

The young woman saw another Wartock running down the path towards her. "Now to try out my magic skills" she said out aloud concentrating to bring forth the lighting spell. It erupted from her hands hitting the Wartock a few times but the fourth time she tried it didn't work. "Out of mana" she muttered drawing the flamestrike to finish the creature off. She collected a couple of gold coins from his pocket and continued on.

Back in the cave entrance, Arokh sat down to make himself more comfortable, he didn't even hear the Wartock chieftain coming up behind him due to the noise of the wind.  
"Outta my way" he growled at the dragon not noticing who he was. Arokh turned his head sharply upon noticing the inhuman voice and the Wartock suddenly noticed his grave mistake.  
"You're not... an.. Ice bat" he stammered with fear. Arokh whipped round and knocked the Wartock to the ground and unable to pin it down with his foot, sat on the Wartock's chest but yet not fully putting his weight down so not to injure the creature.

"Ice bat eh? So you _have _made allies with them" Arokh asked.  
"Yes, kind of. We have an agreement you see" came a muffled voice from underneath the dragon.  
"Why.. who are you?" The Wartock questioned.  
"I am Arokh, a dragon of the Elder Breed" the dragon replied with a smile but the Wartock could not see his face.  
"But, that's not possible. They are all sleeping in stone!" The Wartock protested, not believing what he was being told.  
"Not me. I was awakened and I'm going to put an end to your plans" Arokh sneered putting more force on the creature's chest.  
The Wartock was beginning to understand, somehow the name Arokh seemed familiar to him. He was sure he had heard of it in some story when he was a child but he couldn't quite remember.

Suddenly, after a short silence, the Wartock remembered that Arokh was Heron's dragon, the one who had brought an end to the Dark Wars.  
"You aren't the Arokh who killed Navaros are you?" The Wartock asked fearfully, his voice still muffled but the dragon understood him perfectly.  
"Got it in one" Arokh growled. The Wartock's heartbeat began to race and he for once felt fearful of his life. "You will never leave this place you know" he quivered.  
Arokh gave a short sarcastic laugh. "We will see about that. I have a dilemma for you; tell me where Bonegrinder is and I will let you go. If you don't, well, Ill kill you. Painfully."  
The Wartock thought for a moment. "Never!" He said defiantly, not wanting to suffer the wrath of Bonegrinder should he disobey his orders. Surely, Arokh would kill him in a quicker, less painful way than what he would be subjected to at the hands of Bonegrinder and his henchmen.

Arokh's jaws curved into a wicked smile as he broke wind into the Wartock's face. "Pooh, smell that!" he grinned standing up slightly to see the creature's face, quickly sitting back down again when it tried to get up. Arokh laughed away to himself for a while till he could speak without laughing.  
"Okay, Ill tell you but its kind of difficult with a dragon's arse in my face. Can you let me up?" The Wartock asked breathing as slow as he could so he didn't have to breathe in the offending smell.  
Arokh got to his feet and quickly turned round to face the creature fixing it with cruel red eyes. "Try anything, you are dead" he snarled.

"It's to the North. Carry on up the coastline till you see a large tornado. Below that is the entrance to Bonegrinder's lair but Ill tell you now the entrance is too small for you to enter." The creature explained pointing a hairy arm in the general direction.  
Arokh cocked his head on one side. "Don't you worry about that. Now get lost before I change my mind about killing you."  
The Wartock turned and ran away into the rain as fast as he could. Arokh watched and then drew his face into a slight evil grin as he shot several balls of flame at the Wartock killing it outright.  
"Thank you for your time" he said with a smile and sat down waiting for Rynn to return.

Meanwhile, Rynn had made her way stealthily through the short cave system avoiding wartocks and their Grull cousins with years of practised ease. Eventually, she came to a large open area where stalagmites grew from the ceiling meeting their opposite companions on the floor. She was suddenly startled by the sound of male human voices as a gate opened abruptly at one side of the cavern. Quickly ducking behind a ledge, Rynn peered over to get a view not wanting to be seen at that moment; the suspected traitors could be just as hostile as the Wartocks.

Two men dressed in dirty clothes came running out of the gate that had opened pushed forward by a large Wartock. Another came up to meet them and they stopped in the centre of the cave by a few large crates. One of the men pulled something from his pocket and showed it to the Wartock, Rynn strained forward to see what it was.  
Small snippets of conversation could just be made out; it appeared to her that the men were wanting escape the isles leaving the rest behind in exchange for something but she couldn't make out exactly what.  
The Wartock's distinctly louder voice was easily heard though when he answered the human's plea.

"Hah! Do you think Bonegrinder would stop the storms just for a couple of humans? No? Well, neither would I. Humans in this world will be dead soon anyway... All of them!" He laughed raising his battle-axe high into the air. There was a horrible crunch as the axe was brought down on the man's head splitting it open like a melon. His companion screamed in terror and the second Wartock ran him through with his sword then both of them left sniggering to themselves hitting each other's palms in triumph.

Rynn shook her head in disgust and swallowed hard. "_Another waste of human life_" she thought to herself knowing that the human race was already on the verge of extinction. She figured that there was no more than 10,000 humans left in the entire world, Surdana itself had a population of only 900. Since the Dark Wars, humans had been systematically slain by the beasts driven on by Navaros's influence - even long after his exile. Furthermore, the Desert Lords did not favour the human race choosing to enslave or kill humans whenever they could. She wondered why it took so long for her own village to be attacked with all that was happening in the world, she didn't even know of the atrocities until she met Lady Myschala.  
She let out a sigh of dismay hoping that they would be successful and crept down to where the two slain humans lay on the ground.

Rynn searched the bodies for the item one of them was showing to the Wartock. They were traitors but humans nevertheless and Rynn felt angry but yet sad at the same time. She soon found what she was looking for - a rolled up chart showing the partial outline of the Central and Northern continents with several islands dotted around the sea. One of the islands was labelled 'Andrellian isles outpost' in the top half of the chart. She put the bloodstained chart in her pocket and quickly left via the door the humans came through shortly finding herself back outside in the driving rain.

"Arokh!" she shouted into the wind but there was no reply. It was obvious to her that she had come out of an alternative entrance to the caves and Arokh was further up the coast. Sighing again, she began to walk up the coast watching out for any more Wartocks but the coast was clear; wisely they were sheltering from the rain inside caves and tunnels. Suddenly, Arokh appeared seemingly from nowhere and landed behind her in a clear area.

"You have good hearing" Rynn commented. "Let's get back to Fandril before I catch cold."  
The great red dragon smiled in agreement and let Rynn onto his back quickly flying up into the air to hover for a moment. "We had better follow the coast back, its difficult to see through the rain" he suggested making his way south, the dragon's wings tirelessly cutting through the wind.

After a good ten minutes, the welcome sight of the outpost lighthouse could be seen through the driving rain and Arokh began his decent making his debut by the docks.  
"Please don't be long" he grumbled as Rynn jumped off his scaled back to run up to the docked ship. She did not bother to answer and quickly ran into the cabin where Captain Fandril was still seated at the table.  
"I have the charts," Rynn said placing them onto the table. Fandril's eyes lit up with excitement as he unfolded them.  
"They are a bit soggy and bloodstained but they are legible. Here, take this as a reward, you deserve it" he said throwing a ruby stone towards her. Rynn nodded and pocketed it.  
"I'm afraid your men didn't make it. I was too late," Rynn said sadly.  
Fandril stayed silent for a moment then lifted his head to look at her. "Aye, it was to be expected."

Rynn felt slightly awkward with the situation and turned to head for the door. "I'm going to take care of Bonegrinder now," she said as she opened the door, the rain immediately soaking the wooden floor.  
"Aye. Good luck, I'd hate to see you or your dragon suffer at the hands of that wretch." The captain said looking up from the table.  
Rynn gave a weary smile and returned to Arokh.

"Now is the time to teach that Bonegrinder a lesson" Rynn commented as she stood by the dragon's side. His head turned round to see her, the rain running down his face and off his nose. He blinked and shook his head violently sending droplets of water off in all directions but it didn't matter, Rynn was already soaked through.  
"If I were you, I'd go and see if you can buy a few health potions from the sailors back in that cave there" Arokh suggested. "If Bonegrinder is as powerful as they make out, we had better go prepared."

"Good idea" Rynn agreed and walked past the small canvas tents in which the stranded sailors made their home and continued on back to the cave where she had met Master Sevoth.  
"Ah, Rynn. Its good to see you are still in one piece. Have you found anything out about Bonegrinder?" Sevoth asked looking up from the barrel he was sitting on.  
Rynn shook her head then nodded. "Sort of. I more or less know where he is; I'm going to get stocked up and make my way up there. You will be free soon, don't worry."  
Sevoth gave a hearty laugh "Well I certainly hope so, good luck!"

Rynn left the warmth of the cave and stopped by Olag's 'shop' to buy a few health potions as Arokh had suggested. She didn't really want to see that creepy half-wit again but she depended on him and was as pleasant as she could. "You really pretty. You come back now!" he shouted as she ran back up the tunnel to the waiting Arokh.  
"What's with the smile?" The dragon questioned. "There's nothing funny about this situation!"  
"Oh nothing, just a half-wit with a crush on me in the cave" Rynn grumbled climbing onto his back. The dragon smiled slightly to himself and took off into the stormy skies.

The journey to the Northernmost island took about half an hour, getting there would be an almost impossible task for the stranded sailors let alone for them to attack Bonegrinder. Rynn realised why they had almost given up, hoping for the storms to stop by themselves. Arokh must have seemed like a godsend to them.

The winds were very strong blowing the dragon all over the place and the stray blackwing or two further complicated matters. Several boats and Grull camps were found on the way and both of them stopped to explore finding gold, potions and other valuable items, all which had been looted from the unfortunate ships. Sadly, their human occupants had been killed to the duo's dismay but still they pressed on not letting it get them down.

Eventually, as they passed over the island, a large tornado funnel could be seen coming from a hole in the ground rising up to a huge dome above them. The area around the hole was covered in sand and a cave entrance could just be made out in the rocks at the base of the funnel. Getting closer, Rynn could see that there was a deep shaft into the ground from which the tornado came from.  
"That must be the lair!" Arokh shouted pointing out the cave entrance.  
Suddenly, a teleporter activated in front of the cave and a large Grull appeared on the sand below them. Arokh glanced down and briefly looked around for any foes and looked back down at the Grull ready to exhale a long stream of flame but the Grull began to speak. "Correct. I am Bonegrinder but you will never reach me. Mizzidrel! Arise!" He shouted and disappeared when he reactivated the teleporter.

Arokh turned his head back so he could see his rider. "I guess that was that" he said raising an eye ridge. Rynn wasn't listening however as her eyes were firmly fixed on what was in front of them. Arokh saw the fear on her face and slowly followed her gaze; a feeling of dread suddenly came over him. Something was not right.  
A large two headed sea serpent had risen from the pool of water outside Bonegrinder's lair and was thrashing its two ugly heads wildly around. Arokh instantly recognised the creature and his fear subsided a little although he knew he was in danger.  
"Mizzidrel! What are you doing here?" He shouted over the thunderous noise of the tornado above them.

"Ah, Arokh." Mizzidrel said scornfully. "Bonegrinder said there was a dragon of the Order to kill, I never would have dreamed it would be you" the creature hissed.  
Taken aback slightly, Arokh gave his response. "Well, I never thought you would join the Dark Union" he said with disappointment.  
"Well that is where you are wrong. I didn't. I serve the Desert Lords. Anyway, what's it matter to you? Its time you were put to sleep forever!" Mizzidrel laughed and began to brew up her devastating lightning breath.  
"What now?" Rynn questioned.  
"If you have any invulnerability potions, use them or we are dead meat!" Arokh snarled, edging away uneasily; he knew Mizzidrel would make short work of him with just a couple of shots of her breath weapon.

Hearing Arokh asking her to take the Invulnerability potion she could really make out how dangerous and powerful that two headed sea serpent was, as it stood tall with its two monstrous heads thrashing them in an offensive manner. Ever since the death of Werokh, Arokh had never thought that he would again have to fight with someone whom he had known quite well who had turned traitor against the Order.

He knew now it was either him or Mizzidrel, so without wasting much time he prepared himself to fight the creature with his full strength. As it wasn't going to be easy fighting that two headed creature, Arokh asked Rynn to use her bow and he himself flew to other side of Mizzidrel and shot several balls of flame. Though the lightning struck Rynn several times but couldn't do her any harm and Arokh was quick enough to save himself from the lightning though it just missed him by a short distance. Rynn's arrows couldn't do much damage so it was up to Arokh to slay the serpent and he had to be quick as Rynn had just one invulnerability potion left and Arokh knew that Rynn want be able to stand for a second against that monster.  
Arokh made a quick move towards Mizzidrel and burst a cloud of fire frying one head, which almost reduced her power to half after so much damage. Still her other head was waving around healthily and attacking more quickly than before. This time Arokh couldn't save himself and the lightning struck him in the wings. Rynn noticed that and she quickly took a healing potion. With another quick move he approached Mizzidrel and burst a cloud of fire finishing the serpent in one final blast of flame.

"Phew, that was a hard fight" Rynn said gasping with exhaustion.  
Arokh looked round in surprise. "What do you mean? It was I who did the hard work!"  
Rynn laughed it off and Arokh noted her humour, letting the incident slip from his mind. He tried to forget about Mizzidrel, he wasn't really friends with her but he knew the creature well that lived in the ocean surrounding the central continent. He landed outside the entrance to Bonegrinder's lair and stopped eyeing the huge tornado with wonder.  
"I was told only you could fit through the door to this place," he said staring into the cave; he could not see any reason why, the opening was huge and large enough for ten dragons to fit through.

Rynn shrugged as Arokh walked into the cave, past the huge funnel that was coming from a hole in the cave floor and passing through another in the roof to the sky above. "Don't stray too close Arokh or we will be sucked in" Rynn said as they passed it but Arokh didn't hear her.  
"There!" Rynn pointed out noticing a large door, partially opened so that it was only big enough for her to fit through.  
Arokh hurried over and Rynn got off to try and force the door open some more but it was too heavy.  
"Let me try. It may need superior strength" Arokh muttered gently pushing her out of the way with the side of his head. Rearing up on his hind legs, the dragon pushed with all his strength on the huge stone door, pushing it fully home into the wall.  
"See? All it needed was a little push" he grinned at the surprised Rynn who simply frowned. "Well. Lets get going then" she added.

Arokh walked through into the lair killing a pair of Wartock guards and turned round to see where his bonded was.  
"Well are you coming or not?" he said with a smile.

The bonded pair could see that the wide tunnels and caves that led to Bonegrinder's lair led steadily downwards encircling the central area from which the tornado funnel thundered from. The noise level made it impossible for the two to speak and hear each other but they sort of knew what each other was thinking.

The tunnels leading to the lair was as expected, full of Grull and Wartocks but they were no match for the mighty dragon who pushed onwards breathing clouds of flame at anything that dared to attack. They hadn't anticipated that a dragon would enter those tunnels; after all, no one would have expected it. Bonegrinder was completely unaware of Arokh's awakening and Navaros's defeat, cut off from the rest of the world for the last two weeks due to his storms.  
Eventually, the tunnel came to an end in a large cavern. Seeing no enemies, Arokh strode forward but suddenly something surprised him. A Wartock appeared out of thin air in front of him; it's back turned. He turned his head round to regard Rynn with a puzzled expression who simply shrugged.

"The Wartocks have learnt some useful magic" Rynn muttered to herself but Arokh did not hear. He incinerated the unsuspecting creature and flew down to the next level trying to avoid the thundering column of wind; getting caught in that would spell instant death for both of them.  
After some time, the pair came to a large door blocking the end of the tunnel, which was guarded by a couple of large Wartocks who Arokh naturally killed on sight.  
"That must be the lair. The only problem is, how do we get in now that you have killed the guards?" Rynn asked, the dragon now able to hear as the noise of the wind was not as loud.

"Hmm, always blaming me" Arokh grumbled, his jaws drawing into a scowl. "I suppose we knock."  
"We could have persuaded the guards to open the door" Rynn pointed out gesturing her hand to one of the charred corpses.  
"And what makes you think they would have obeyed?" Arokh objected.  
"Well, you are very persuasive. No-one would argue with you" Rynn said with a smile.  
Arokh growled to himself and strode up to the door but it opened by itself as if they were expected. He frowned and entered noticing that they were at the foot of the giant funnel. Looking up, the dragon could see that it was emanating from a large blue crystal suspended by chains fastened to the cavern walls.

"So that's how he is creating the storms!" Rynn gasped looking around the spacious cavern.  
"Yes!" a voice came from nearby.  
Arokh sharply turned his head towards the voice and saw the large Grull he saw earlier dressed in fine robes, like what a mage would wear.  
"Ah I see you were stupid enough to come here. It's a pity you survived at all; I will never put my trust in that sea serpent again. How on Drakan did you get past her?" Bonegrinder demanded holding out his staff in a threatening manner. Arokh looked at it and laughed scornfully.

"Mizzidrel is dead and you will be soon unless you stop these storms and surrender" he grated, still eyeing the beast with scorn. "I promise your safe passage to Surdana if you give yourself up."  
The Grull laughed and scowled at the dragon stepping backwards so that he was out of his reach. "Never! You think Bonegrinder is stupid? Bonegrinder live for nearly 200 years and never felt threatened by anyone or anything. No, its you that should surrender. Then you will die."  
"What! You think you can defeat me, you pathetic little wretch!" Arokh snarled, further enraged by the fact that Bonegrinder was smiling confidently. "Your magic may be impressive but let's not forget what you are. A Grull! By the time I have finished, you will be licking my feet, begging for me to kill you" Arokh roared, his fury beginning to rise.

"I doubt it" Bonegrinder laughed and ran backwards a few paces hurling a beam of energy at the dragon temporally stunning him. He retaliated but to his surprise the shaman was not harmed! He tried again but was unsuccessful.  
"Ah, now you are worried" Bonegrinder sneered seeing the dragon's expression.  
"I am not worried" he snapped. "Rynn, there must be some way he is invulnerable keep your eyes open" he said sharply to his bonded.  
Rynn nodded in reply and flicked her eyes around the cavern. Nothing was obvious at first but suddenly she noticed that as Arokh attacked Bonegrinder, faint blue energy bolts leapt from four crystals embedded in stone columns in the centre of the room. They snaked around and eventually met the top of Bonegrinder's helmet seemingly healing him.

"Arokh, there!" She shouted pointing out the crystals.  
"I see them" the dragon confirmed. "Get off and see if you can destroy them. Ill watch your back."  
Rynn did not need to be told twice and leapt from the dragon's back firing an arrow into one of the crystals shattering it into tiny fragments.  
"No!" Bonegrinder cried and ran after Rynn who was now running around the cavern trying to destroy the rest of them. Arokh was quicker though and leapt at the oversized Grull slashing him with his claws slowing his progress. Rynn was hit once but she still had the energy to carry on. One more crystal was left when she was hit again throwing her to the floor.  
Panting, she looked up to see Bonegrinder's face above hers drawn into a hideous grin. His axe began to fall and Rynn closed her eyes expecting the blow but it never came.

A loud snarl echoed in the cavern as Arokh's foreleg lashed out knocking Bonegrinder to one side. "Now Rynn!" He shouted. Rynn took that moment to destroy the final crystal and rolled over to face the battling Bonegrinder and Arokh.  
"Now look who is worried" Arokh laughed scornfully.  
"He is vulnerable now!" Rynn shouted stating the obvious. "I know" Arokh snapped as he curled one of his front feet into a fist and punched Bonegrinder to the floor.  
The Grull reeled about in pain; Arokh had clearly broken one of its ribs. Not satisfied, the dragon began to really lay into Bonegrinder, kicking him relentlessly over and over until he coughed up blood, panting for breath.

"No more, please! Let me live" He sobbed spitting a mouthful of blood onto the dusty cave floor.  
Arokh laughed. "See, you are not so powerful now are you? You want to live? Beg then" he snorted moving one of his front legs closer.  
Bonegrinder never thought this moment would come; he was about to beg for his life. What would be more shameful? Dying miserably having failed or kissing the feet of a dragon of the Order then having to tell his master he failed? He pondered the situation for a while, knowing that the Desert Lords would certainly kill him if they found out. He could always use his magic to hide from them. Yes, that is what he would do.

Bonegrinder crawled over to Arokh's extended foot painfully. He didn't dare to look up and see the dragon's expression. He paused again and thought of the shame. He closed his eyes and licked Arokh's foot whispering a faint "Please, I beg of you" but there was no reply from above. Slowly he again licked the dragon's foot and even between the toes with his extended tongue and muttered something to himself. Arokh was enjoying it; he looked down with scorn and quickly looked across at his bonded who simply rolled her eyes.  
"Surely, you are not going soft are you?" she questioned.  
"Nah, he dies" Arokh growled beginning to back away.  
"No, Please!" Bonegrinder cried grabbing hold of the dragon's ankle.  
"Get off" he snarled kicking him away then engulfing him in a cloud of flame ending his long life. All was heard was a pain filled scream then silence.

"You have a strange sense of satisfaction Arokh. I mean do you enjoy having your feet licked or something? I kissed yours when we met and from what I understand so did the servant who bathed you" Rynn said noticing the dragon seemed to enjoy watching the Grull beg.  
He gave sheepish smile. "Well, I never asked you to kiss my feet, all I asked was for you to kneel which is customary if a human wishes to bond with a dragon; its to show their respect. You did that of your own accord. Anyway, of course I do. Like I say, many centuries ago, dragons were treat with great respect; any human had to bow before us whenever we met except for high-ranking members of the Order. If anyone insulted or displeased a dragon in some way, it was normal for them to kiss the dragon's feet to beg for forgiveness. It's a way of showing our superiority over less powerful races" he explained.

"Hmm, so you consider me less powerful?" Rynn questioned.  
"You are a human, yes." Came the short reply.  
Rynn's shoulders sank and Arokh noticed her expression. He smiled and touched her on the shoulder. "I was only joking Rynn. You are more than a friend to me and I would never consider you to be less superior to me."  
Rynn's face changed into a more pleased look and she patted him on the side of the neck. "Come on, let's get out of this hell hole."  
The storms had now stopped, ended upon Bonegrinder's death. Rynn collected his staff; it was far too heavy for her to use efficiently as a weapon but it would certainly fetch a lot of money if sold.

The bonded pair left the caves into a vastly different environment to which they had entered. The storm clouds had gone leaving a clear blue late afternoon sky, the spring sun gently warming the rain soaked grass. The body of Mizzidrel still lay strewn across the grass where she had been expertly slain by the formidable Arokh.  
"It seems I forgot something," Arokh said as he flew up into the sky. Rynn could see what he was heading for; a large orb glowed in the sky above Mizzidrel's fallen body. Arokh absorbed it giving him the additional breath weapon of lightning; a devastating powerful weapon useful against both ground and air foes, not as powerful as when Mizzidrel had it but better than his natural flame breath.

Together, they flew over the islands towards the outpost; they could now see for miles. To the south was the northern coast of the central continent where Surdana lay and to the North, the coast of Ravenshold could just be made out.  
"Nice scenery" Rynn said taking a moment to take in the view.  
Arokh grunted and sharply turned noticing a few boats heading in their direction, Rynn noticed one was Captain Fandril's ship.  
Hastily they headed over and Arokh hovered closer, he could see Fandril on the deck.

"I see you did it! Well done, I thought we were stuck here. Follow my ship and we will guide you to Ravenshold" he shouted.  
"Do we need a guide, we can see the coast" Rynn pointed out to Arokh.  
"We see the coast, not Ravenshold itself" he replied flatly.  
"We will be glad to. Would you mind if I landed on your ship's deck? I find it difficult to fly slow for a long time" Arokh shouted back to Fandril.  
"Sure" came the reply.

Arokh shortly landed on the deck with a loud thud, Rynn jumping off to talk with Captain Fandril.  
"How long will the journey take?" She asked the weather-beaten man.  
Fandril took a deep drag on his pipe and breathed out a large cloud of smoke, which quickly blew away in the slight breeze. "We should reach the Ravenshold Trading post by morning. Come, you must be tired and hungry."  
Fandril led her into the cabin and she turned round to speak to Arokh. "You will be OK out here won't you?" she asked the noble dragon.  
"Oh, yes, Ill be fine. Don't worry about me," he said sarcastically.

"Your dragon seems a little annoyed" Fandril mentioned once they were inside. "Oh don't worry about him, he is pleasant most of the time but sometimes he can be moody and he has a foul temper." Rynn replied closing the door behind her.  
"Well I certainly don't want to be on the receiving end of his fury; I saw him destroy those catapults and kill the Grull" Fandril laughed.  
She sat at the table she sat at before and waited whilst the captain brewed some hot tea. "If you don't mind me asking, what cargo are you carrying?" Rynn asked.

"Clothes and other supplies. There is a trading post we are going to; we will sell our wares to the Northmen." Fandril relied. His eyes looked Rynn up and down noting her thin tunic and armour.  
"You will be cold in the Northlands wearing just that. You can take whatever you want from our cargo as a token of appreciation. Its the best we can do I'm afraid."

"No problem" Rynn laughed. "All I want at the moment is some socks. These boots are murder without any."  
"Oh we have plenty of socks" the captain laughed. Rynn felt a sudden friendship between them and they began to discuss their life stories well into the late evening.

**Chapter Seventeen: Treading on unfamiliar Ground****  
**  
Night soon came and Rynn was given a bunk below decks. She was tired but could not sleep; she had too much on her mind and the snores from the nearby men did not help. She thought of Arokh outside and eventually drifted off to sleep to the creaking of the wooden ship.  
Her dreams soon came; she was a dragon, a beautiful golden Elder Breed flying over the mountains and lands of Drakan. Below, the world flourished, freed from evil of the Desert Lords and human cities were plentiful. She began to descend to a cave and entered, the dream was so powerful she felt like she was returning home.

Inside, Arokh sat waiting. He stood up and came over to greet her and then, the events of the ten minutes that followed made Rynn suddenly awake almost falling out of her bunk. She looked around the dark room and saw that she was still on the ship, no one else was awake. She looked down at her arms - Human. It was all a dream she realised but yet it felt so real. Did this mean she would turn into a dragon and become Arokh's lover? He did say he wanted to be a father again but to _mate _with her? She shook her head dismissing this thought and interpreted the dream of just the emotional trauma she had been through recently. She sighed and rolled over lying awake until morning came.

She was grateful of the breakfast the ship's crew had prepared; they had given her a large portion of their rations as a kind of thankyou. It didn't matter to them as they would soon find food in Ravenshold.  
"Have you fed Arokh?" She asked suddenly remembering the dragon outside in the cold.  
"No" a sailor remarked looking up from the table.  
"I'd better see how he is" Rynn suggested leaving the room. She climbed the ladder to the front cabin and went out onto the ship's deck that was covered in a thin layer of snow.  
She shivered and pulled her clothes tighter. She suddenly remembered the dream and couldn't look Arokh in the eye.  
"Are you alright?" She asked sheepishly.  
"Cold. And pissed off." Arokh snarled walking closer.

Rynn gave a faint smile knowing that Arokh was angry that he had to spend the night without shelter, made worse by the snow. She broke the silence first.  
"Arokh, did we have the same dream last night?" she asked cautiously.  
There was an awful silence. "I think so. Can we not mention it any more, please?" He asked.  
Rynn thought for a moment. It was certainly an _enjoyable_ dream, for her at least but Arokh obviously didn't think so. "Of course, it goes no further." she replied with a smile.

The red dragon stared at her for a few moments. "Glad to hear it" he eventually said and looked away. Arokh swivelled his head around again as the boat neared the docks. "Ah, we are here at last. Suit up, we have to get going" he suggested flying into the air to hover over the ship; his wings needed a good stretch.

The sailors began to unload their cargo whilst Rynn and Arokh watched. On the shore they were met by a couple of the Northmen who manned the small but functional trading post; the only place where wares come and go from the town of Ravenshold.  
The trading post was not much to look at; just a few wooden huts here and there and a stone built lighthouse, its light provided by a magical crystal atop the revolving platform.  
Arokh was so grateful of Captain Fandril's help, he even assisted his men to unload the ship, carrying entire crates bundled together which would normally have to be emptied first. The great red dragon tirelessly carried on backwards and forwards from ship to shore saving the men valuable time and their backbones.

Finally, after some time, their work was done. Fandril's men were busy making deals with the Northmen whilst Fandril sat on a wooden barrel on the pier smoking his pipe as usual. He never seemed to have the thing out of his mouth.

"This is as far as I can take you, I'm afraid. You will find the city of Ravenshold a mile or so inland. Just follow the river and you will be fine" he offered, his withered face smiling broadly noticing that the bonded pair were ready to leave.  
"I can't thank you enough for your help. We must be going; good luck with your journey home and don't forget to stop by Surdana" Rynn wished as they began to depart.  
"Heh, heh, no, thank you" he laughed. "Spare a thought for old Captain Fandril won't you?"

Rynn smiled and shook his hand. "Goodbye. I hope we meet you and your crew again in the future."  
Captain Fandril nodded as Rynn mounted Arokh and they walked away. One of the sailors stepped aside as the majestic beast walked past him. "Dragon, Ill never forget you" he said.  
Arokh turned his head giving a weak smile but did not speak. It was enough for the man to understand that he had pleased the dragon. With a rush of wind, the dragon was aloft and was soon a speck in the sky. Captain Fandril returned to his ship and looked out over the horizon feeling a little lump form in his throat as a sudden feeling of sadness came over him. He had just met the two most remarkable and unique beings that he would probably never see again and let them go without really getting to know them especially the dragon. He sighed and leant on the rail thinking of his journey home and how empty it would seem without the dragon and his rider.

The journey to Ravenshold was short as expected. It was easy to spot amongst the bleak snow covered hills and mountains, thick stone walls and wooden barricades surrounded the city making it stand out in the wilderness. Arokh landed outside the main gate keeping a firm eye on the archers in the two towers at either side of the gate and on the ramparts above should they attack. They were obviously seen coming as the gate partially opened and three burly well armed men walked through to greet them.

"Greetings. What brings you here" Ranwolfe spoke first breaking the silence. He was speaking to Rynn upon Arokh's back but it was he who answered Ranwolfe's question.  
"I am Arokh and this is my bonded, Rynn. We were sent here by Lady Myschala" the dragon spoke boldly. Rynn frowned at being interrupted but did not object.  
"My god, you speak!" Ranwolfe said aghast. "I didn't know dragons could talk."  
Arokh gave a quick snort and grinned. "Of course we can. Elder Breed dragons that is" he pointed out sarcastically.  
"So you are the one sent to open the gate" he continued turning around briefly, signalling the archers to stand easy.  
Arokh did not answer and there was a long silence, eventually Ranwolfe spoke first. "Come, you are welcome here. Take whatever you need for your quest" he said walking through the now fully open gates. Arokh followed them into the city looking round sharply as the huge log gates crashed shut behind.

The 'city' was not a city at all, rather a very small town. In the Town Square, a large fire burned and various sized buildings were dotted around, most of them serving as homes and shops for passing travellers. All of them were nothing more than log cabins, some did not even have any windows, the whole place looked run down and desolate. Huge icicles hung down from the any overhanging edges and thick snow had settled on their sloped roofs and piled up against their walls where the harsh wind had produced vast snowdrifts.  
"You can buy weapons there," Ranwolfe said suddenly pointing towards a rickety wooden shack, which looked like it was about to collapse at any moment.  
"Never mind that, what about the gate?" Arokh asked sharply, his tone of voice making Ranwolfe look a little frightened; he was not used to having such an imposing beast around and he didn't fully trust Arokh despite what he had been told.  
"The gate is just beyond the city; you can't miss it. The second one however is more difficult to get to. You see, its in the half-men's homelands."

"Half-men?" Arokh asked, raising an eye ridge. He had not heard of them before, he only presumed they were new to the world like the Desert Lords although he had not seen many of Drakan's huge variety of animal species.  
"Yes, half-human, half ogre. They are our sworn enemies and attacks on us are frequent. We would never risk venturing to their homelands, it would be suicide and I suspect it will be very dangerous even for you" Ranwolfe answered.  
"Well we will see about that. For now, Ill open the first gate" Arokh growled, he was still irritable about being left in the cold all night. He blew a frosty gust of air and was about to leave when Ranwolfe stopped him. "Feel free to ask any of my men for information about these lands. Ill be in my hut if you need me."  
Arokh grunted in reply and flew over the city and towards the first gate.

The gate was literally a few hundred meters from the northern end of the city, the two dragons curved around its circumference appearing in the misty valley like snakes.  
"This is too easy" Rynn remarked as they got close.  
"We are lucky the gate is near a human establishment otherwise it would probably be much harder" Arokh replied flying closer to the gate. "From what Ranwolfe was saying, the other gate will be not so easy to reach."

Arokh flew up to the gate and concentrated hard and soon a glow of energy flowed from his body to the gate encircling it in a purple glow. Shortly, the gate burst into life and through it the city of Surdana could be made out in a misty haze that shimmered slightly. Rynn stared into the gate, it was like looking into a pool of water and it gave off a low roaring noise.  
"Now what?" she asked.  
"Well, I don't know about you but I am hungry. I suggest going to Surdana to eat and prepare for our journey to the Half-men's lands. We will return here and find out more about them and these lands when we return." Arokh answered, his breath visible in the cold air.

"There is a shop here" Rynn pointed out. Arokh gave a sarcastic laugh. "Look at it. There won't be much of any use in there will there? No? I thought not" he said when Rynn didn't reply. "Come on, let's get some food, its late morning already and I'm starving."

Rynn did not bother to mention that she had already eaten with Captain Fandril as she knew the ship's crew didn't feed Arokh and if he knew, he would be angry. Rynn didn't want one him to be in one of his moods again.

In a blink of an eye they was there. All the snowy mountains were replaced with looming canyons and the weak morning sunlight illuminating the vast grassy plains. It was a sight that Rynn had looked forward to. As the exited the gate, Rynn spotted General Dherimon standing on the platform, in front of the gate, seeming very small from up in the air.  
"Arokh, look. It's General Dherimon" Rynn said.  
"Seems like he wants something!" "Lets go down and talk with him" Arokh noted when he saw the general beckoning to them.  
They landed in front of the General, who tried what he could, not to look afraid of the giant dragon's wings, beating in front of him.  
Rynn jumped of the back of Arokh, and walked over to General Dherimon.  
"I'm afraid I have some disturbing news!" He said "and I need your help before you go on to the next gate" he added in a forlorn voice.

"Is that wise General?" Arokh inquired. "We are well on our way and I'd like to open the second gate before nightfall."

Dherimon's face remained stern and he appeared to be deeply concerned about something. "No Arokh, that must wait. It's seems like forces of wartocks has been gathering in to the east from here". "A chieftain named Snotmaw, has been gathering the forces for an attack on Surdana, and we desperately need your help before they reach our gates!"  
The general looked with a sad expression down to the ground. "I know that you're under a lot of pressure right now, but Snotmaw's forces are too strong for us and we will be unable to defend Surdana". Will you please help us, you're our last hope!"

Rynn couldn't help to think of General Dherimon's forces with a hint of disappointment, either they were ill prepared or simply do not have the numbers to cope with Snotmaw's army.  
Rynn agreed straightaway but Arokh remained reluctant. "Of course I will, but are you sure that the attacks from the wartocks will be over once will kill this Snotmaw?" Rynn asked.  
"There is no doubt that they most certainly will NOT," the general said with extreme confidence. "At least not for a while anyway."  
"The wartocks are tribal beings, they are only holding together because of their fear of Snotmaw. As soon as he is gone, they will disband and spread like the wind" the general said.  
"Ok, can you point us in the direction of the cave then?" Rynn asked.  
"Yes, It's to the east of here, just follow the mountain side" General Dherimon said, while pointing a finger in the right direction.  
Rynn turned to face Arokh, and stared into his glowing eyes, before mounting his back. "OK, lets fly" she shouted. As always, the dragon obeyed realising that it would probably be for the best if he took a little detour.

As they went over the city, they where still amazed over the whole meaning of their amazing adventure. What would it all end with, would the Order ever rise again? How would a New World look like in a few hundred years when Arokh and Rynn are long gone?  
There were still a lot of unsolved questions to answer, and their adventure was far from over at this part. A couple of minutes later they reached a cave implemented a couple of hundred feet over the water surface.  
"Down there" Arokh pointed out. "That must be the entrance to Kragmor".  
"Let's pay that Wartock a visit from the Order!" Arokh said with a sense of revenge in his tone. If Rynn wasn't as used to this now, she was now. She would hear his contempt for this race of beasts, in his voice.  
They landed on the platform, sticking out from the cave, frying a couple of wartocks on the way. Rynn jumped off, and collected the nearby money lying around, which the smelling corpses of the wartocks had dropped. The stench was something she could never get used to! She jumped back on to the back of Arokh, and together they walked through the cave.

"So do you know anything about this chieftain Wartock?" Rynn asked while they moved trough the almost silent cave. There was no wartocks around, no Grull and no other foul creatures. It was almost like it was too quiet.  
"No, but seem as he is a chieftain, I'd assume he is a rather large Wartock. Their system of power isn't particularly complex" Arokh answered stopping a moment to listen. "No it's nothing" he mumbled and carried on towards the opposite exit of the cave.

As they walked out of the cave, they saw a horrible sight. And suddenly a sense of pain and misery cut through the spine of Arokh's back. But the bad feeling didn't come from 'his' heart. It was Rynn who was feeling like somebody had cut through her heart with a rusty spoon.  
"What's the matter?" Arokh asked, sincerely concerned about his partner. Because they where bonded together, he could also feel her pain.  
The valley in front of them consisted of ten to twelve houses, destroyed and only the ruins remained the flames and smoke still rising from the ashes. Rynn immediately came to think about her home village, and felt suddenly saddened, fighting back the tears. She began to think about her little brother again, who died because of these dark ages.  
"I'm sorry!" Arokh proclaimed noticing her sadness.  
"You have nothing to be sorry about Arokh, and you know it" Rynn muttered. "I'm just happy that you're here to help me through this" she added.

She was quickly ready to make justice of her brother's death as her sadness turned to anger and revenge. It was as if she had gained a new energy, to fight for their mission and she soon got her chance for revenge Just around the corner stood a Grull, which seemed like it was stuck. But Rynn didn't care much of this, and soon the little creature was sliced to pieces.  
"Let's find that damned Wartock" Rynn said angrily, as she jumped on the back of Arokh, who instantly leaped into the air, with only a couple a strokes with his gigantic wings.

It did not take them long to discover the first resistance. Blackwings lurked in the skies and the familiar red bat dragons too. Arokh flew through the air like the wind, strong and confident of their progress so far. The lust for vengeance split through their vanes blinding them from the shadowed side of fear. The dragons where soon down, and so were the wartocks on the ground which had gathered around their campfires.  
But something else was down there as well. A mighty creature, three times the size of a Wartock. Rynn had met them before, and they where no easy fight even using Wartocks and Grull to throw at her. But on the back of Arokh, things tended to be much easier, than when Rynn had to travel on her own. Arokh used his devastating lightning breath, and blasted the creatures into bits as the pure electrical energy boiled its blood in seconds.

They went further into the beautiful, but deadly valley. At the left of a huge cliff in the middle Rynn saw something resembling a sacrificial pit on the ground. She asked Arokh to go closer, and as they went closer, they could see that Rynn was right.  
They landed on the ground, and Rynn jumped off Arokh's back. There was a disturbing silence around the pit. Like no Wartock would get close to it. No crates around, left by wartocks, no camp fires and no chest with gold. Rynn had a shivering feeling running down her back.  
"Something is wrong here"; Arokh pronounced.  
"Ill say" Rynn said. "There almost to quiet here, don't you think?"  
"Yes, the wartocks wouldn't have left this pit standing without a scratch, unless they was afraid of it!" Arokh whispered.  
"There must be something in there" Rynn said with enthusiasm "I think Ill check it out".  
The pit was an open sacrificial pit. In front of Rynn there was 8 huge stones standing up, with markings engraved in them one in each side of her. At the end there was an altar with stones in a circle around it, and in the back of it a dead man chained to a stone. He had suffered a painful death, it would seem.  
"I'm going to take the chance" Rynn said eventually.

"Be careful" warned Arokh standing ready to protect her should anything happen.  
As Rynn started to walk in between the stones to either side of her, the markings on the stones started to light up with purple light, seemingly out of thin air.  
"_There must be magic involved in this_" Rynn thought to herself, as she walked down between the next set of stones again lighting like the others did. When she came to the end she saw the altar in the middle, with a hole, matching the form of her previous earth blade.  
But as she approached the altar, two skeletons erupted from the ground on each side of her. She quickly drew her blade and ran towards one of the skeletons. The skeleton had a large axe in one hand, ready to cut her through. But Rynn made a roll to the right of the skeleton, stood up fast, swiftly moved her blade between her top arm and her chest, and stabbed the skeleton in the back, making its bones fall apart. As she turned to face the other skeleton, she saw it burst into flames. Arokh hovered in the sky, as her protector, and he was very good at his job.

After 4 more skeletons, which wanted to join the party, no more seemed to come forward, and Rynn could place the blade back in the holster. But when she thought it was over, a sudden burst of lightning came down from the skies, pushing Rynn to the ground. After the blazing light was over, Rynn was amazed to see that there was a sword lying on the altar that was not there before. She took it up in her hands, and felt a surge of electricity running through her body, not painful, but uplifting. The purple dual sided blade was engraved with beautiful markings, and had a gold embraced handle.

"Look what I got" she said to Arokh, with a hint of superiority in her voice.  
"Ah, the lightning blade of the Order. It's a long time since I saw that" Arokh said, like he wasn't surprised at all. It was a bit annoying for Rynn that Arokh always seemed to know everything about everything but wasn't very good at explaining things or pointing things out when he should do.  
"It's has the power to cast a ring of electricity around you, to strike your enemies" Arokh said.  
"Ill have a practice with this later then." Rynn said putting the sword with the Earthblade and Flamestrike. She discarded a small shortsword to make room for it across her back as it was certainly a more superior weapon. "Well let's go, we have to get to that Snotmaw fellow".

As they flew further down the valley over more smoking ruins, Arokh spotted Snotmaw's lair on the ground. Outside there was one of the huge giants, throwing crates with explosives against Arokh and Rynn. But Arokh soon had that part covered and they landed soon after on the ground in front of the lair.

"You'll have to deal with this on your own" Arokh said. "Ill be right here waiting and watching your back."  
"Alright, Ill hurry up, and kill that damn Wartock" Rynn said impatiently and turned to run into the cave.  
Rynn went into the lair, and the first thing she met was an angry Wartock, running towards her.  
"I can smell youuu!" the Wartock mumbled while running towards her.  
Rynn soon took care of the Wartock and moved on deeper into the cave.  
As she got further into the cave, she came to a place in a hall, with a single rail track in the floor. She didn't really care what it was there for, until she stepped onto it to get further down the hall. Suddenly a big twisting death machine, with blades stuck to an iron pole came sliding towards her. She quickly ran down the hall worried for her life, when she saw a hole in the side. Since the twisting blades were almost touching her hair, in the back of her neck, she decided to jump into the hole. But as she did, spikes came flying out of the wall, and she ducked in the very last minute, so that head wouldn't get cut off. She took a few deep breaths until the revolving blades had past her again, and then she ran towards the end of the tunnel, slicing a few wartocks at the end. After the short momentary rest in the hole, she sat down to get some very needed air in her lungs.  
"_Oh, that chieftain Wartock, is going to pay, when I get a hold of him_" she thought to herself, as she sat down.  
Soon after, she was on her up on her feet again, and journeyed deeper into the cave, looking for Snotmaw.  
She came into a tunnel with different paths branching off leading to basements and keeps. In one room there was jail cells, with Grull imprisoned in them. For fun, Rynn released one of them, and stood ready to slice it when it came out. But as the Grull left its cell, the ceiling came down squashing it, in front of the eyes of Rynn.

"_I better keep my distance in here, it crawls with traps all over the place_" Rynn thought to herself, while journeying further into the tunnels. In another room she saw men and Grull hanging on sticks and hooks from the ceiling. A Wartock stood in the middle of the room, and Rynn got so angry that she sliced the Wartock into tiny pieces; it did not have a chance. Rynn found lots of gold in chests in the back of the room, and decided to pick it up, even though it probably was belonging to the dead men in the ceiling. But all that gold would help her to buy more advanced weapons, so she could kill more of those damn wartocks. They obviously seemed to feed on humans much to her disgust and the meat she found on the table in the mines the other day may well have been human. She swallowed hard and left the room continuing on the path ahead.

All of the sudden, the path ended into a large room with a bunch of wartocks on a platform above, screaming and shouting. Cheering for something. She then heard a deep pounding in the ground, feeling it through her legs. Then, a giant came waltzing out from a cave nearby. She had walked into a trap.  
The Wartocks, was obviously not concerned about this as they knew she was coming and wanted her to loose the fight, which would be some entertainment for their boring lives.

As the giant approached, it lifted its leg up in the air ready to stamp on Rynn flattening her into the ground. But Rynn jumped in between its legs, and sliced it in its ankles from behind. The Giant screamed loudly. It was probably three times as big as Rynn, but at this point she had gained some neat weapons. The giant swung its paw at Rynn, but she jumped into the air and did a sideways flip. But before she landed the giant had swung its other paw against her, and it hit her in the side. Rynn went flying through the air and smashed into the side of the cave. It was a hard blow for her health. She drank a health potion fast, and swiftly drew the lighting blade from her back. She held it up in the air, and a circle a lightning came flying from the blade, shattering the air and the giant around her. As the giant was paralysed from the lightning, she took the blade and stabbed the creature directly in the stomach. It made a loud roar, and started to tip over. Rynn jumped through the legs once again, and the giant came crashing to the ground, almost crushing Rynn in the process. As she stood up she could hear the Wartocks was not happy about the situation, which they wasn't keeping quiet about. She quickly drew her bow, and sent an arrow through the air, hitting a Wartock right in the eye and making it topple off the edge and crashing into the ground below.

Suddenly, it became deadly quiet the room, as the wartocks stared at their dead companion bleeding on the ground.  
"Now, you'll have to deal with me" a deep voice said from behind a cell door.  
A very large Wartock came waking out from the dark. With a large shield in one hand, and a huge clever in the other, it could only be him, Rynn thought.

"So, you must be the Snotmaw I have been hearing so much about. Maybe, you should have hired a smarter giant, because this one didn't seemed to be of the elite race" Rynn said, trying to annoy the chieftain, so that he would make mistakes in battle.  
"YOU, DIE NOW!" Snotmaw exclaimed, infuriated at the death of his pride and joy. Now he had to prove himself worthy to the other wartocks who were cheering him on from above.  
As the chieftain came running towards her, Rynn leapt into the air again, avoiding the blade of the cleaver as it came flying through the air. When he had his shield down, Rynn stuck the blade, directly into Snotmaw's side causing an agonising scream of pain. The chieftain smashed Rynn on the side of the head with the shield, but he was still slow and clumsy. It didn't take long for Rynn to bring down the chieftain. A couple of blast of lightning, and the large Wartock couldn't take anymore, and dropped to the ground.  
As Rynn picked up his cleaver, the cheering wartocks came down from the platform angry over their leader's death wanting to kill Rynn. But they where no match for Rynn now, she was too confident, and too fast. When it was over, and wartocks were covering the floor, Rynn headed towards the exit to find a way out.

As she came out from the blood bath, she ran to the right, wanting to see her dear dragon again. She was very tired of wartocks right now. But apparently it wasn't as easy as expected.  
In front of her there was three giant wooden planks hanging from the ceiling, gliding forwards and backwards with the draught through the cave system, and Rynn realised that she would have to jump from one to the other to get across. And it seemed as the only way out as she was not willing to spend more time trying to find an alternative route.

Rynn took her stance and waited for the exact moment to make her move, when the wooden board was in the right position. Then she ran jumped with all the strength she could muster. Then she waited again on the next board and a moment later she made to the other side. There a Wartock was waiting for her, but she jumped around fast, so that it could not hit her, with the flaming magic balls, from its hand. She quickly killed it, and headed for the elevator nearby. At the top she could finally see the exit behind a wooden door. At last she could leave this hell hole, and see her beloved dragon, which was waiting outside for her return.

"So, was he as bad as Dherimon made out that chieftain Wartock?" asked Arokh when Rynn came out of Snotmaw's lair and back into daylight.  
"You should have seen that giant like thing I had to fight besides Snotmaw" Rynn said tidying her hair.  
"Yes, I'm sure it was horrible" Arokh said with a sarcastic smile.  
"No, REALLY it was HUGE" Rynn pointed out, a little annoyed at the dragon's sarcasm.  
"Off course it was" Arokh answered, this time with a very large element of sarcasm in his voice.  
"You should have been the one in there" Rynn said angrily. "If you weren't so big, you could have gone in there instead."

"I could feel your pain as well, you know" Arokh objected. "By the way, I was only joking" he added after a short pause.

Rynn grinned back at him broadly realising that he wasn't being nasty, rather trying to make the situation a little less tense with his sense of humour.

"Alright, let's get going then, we have to go see General Dherimon and inform him of our victory. Hopefully he might give us a little reward" Rynn said, while leaping on to the back of Arokh. The great dragon lifted off, and they headed to the place where they entered Kragmor going back to the land of Surdana.

They went through the cave ones more and headed back towards the town of Surdana landing at the Mother's Eye where general Dherimon was still waiting. He looked thankful at their return partly because he knew that they had succeeded and that they were still alive.

"Well, Did you kill that wretched Snotmaw?" he asked in a grave voice.

"Yes, we finished off Snotmaw and most of his tribes in Kragmor, and one damn big giant" Rynn said while giving Arokh a unsatisfied look.  
"With the Snotmaw gone, and the southern tribes in chaos, the Wartock clans will be easy to defeat. "Thank you, and may you journey be successful" The General wished while waving to Rynn on the back of Arokh.  
"Thank you general, and we will be back shortly" Rynn shouted to the general on the ground, while Arokh leapt into the air. "Now how about something to eat?" He shouted back at her.

"Definitely, I think we have earned it." Rynn answered back.

Arokh flew over towards Surdana's town square setting down near the tavern. "You go on in. Ill meet you here in half an hour" he said letting Rynn climb off his back.  
She began to make her way to the tavern but noticed that Arokh did not fly away. Turning around, she saw the dragon staring at the ground, his head hung low as if deep in thought.

"What's the matter Arokh?" she asked walking up to stand in front of him.  
He raised his head to look at her, she could see that he was worried about something. "Many things. What the future will bring if we are successful, I mean bringing back the Order seems a good idea but it may turn into another Dark Wars after a couple of generations. That dream we had too, it was probably meaningless but it's strange for us to dream the same thing" he replied thoughtfully.

"You don't think I will become a dragon do you?" Rynn asked remembering that she came 'home' to Arokh's cave as a dragon in the dream.  
Arokh sighed and looked at her. "I don't know, you certainly won't transform into one but its possible for your soul to inhabit another body - a dragon. This requires powerful magic and is considered unlawful, just look at Navaros, that's exactly what he did."  
"It's not quite the same thing though" Rynn said.  
"I know but I absolutely would not let you do such a thing so don't bother thinking of it" Arokh said in a louder tone of voice.  
"Well, I would enjoy being a dragon, you know my feelings for you; we could be..."  
"Be quiet Rynn, please" Arokh snapped cutting her off. "Its silly, don't you think? It was a dream, nothing more" he continued in a softer tone of voice. He grinned at her as a way of showing that he was sorry for snapping at her but he did not apologise.

"I'm sorry Arokh" Rynn apologised. "About the future, do you really think something similar to the Dark Wars would happen?"  
Arokh thought for a moment. "Its possible yes, but this time the Order will not make the mistake of trying to influence other races; humans and dragons, yes but nothing else. We also plan to keep the Order's rule to this continent only rather than trying to control the whole world."  
Rynn nodded in agreement. "You seem to have it all planned out with Lady Myschala, I'm impressed" she smiled.  
"These plans for the future would reduce the likelihood of another war like the Dark War. I'm sure everything will be fine Arokh. We will make a fine team, don't worry" she added.

Arokh smiled slightly. "I'm glad of your enthusiasm. I suppose I'm looking on the black side. To the new Order eh?" He laughed. "Go on and get some food, Ill see you here later."  
Rynn gave him a quick kiss on the side of his head and was gone. The great red dragon flew up into the air and into the countryside to look for a snack; the countryside was filled with all sorts of creatures.  
Rynn however suddenly remembered she had already had breakfast with Captain Fandril and instead took the time to talk with the locals in the tavern. This was her new home and it was time to make new friends.

As before, the tavern went deathly quiet as she walked in, everyone turned round to look at her and whispers were heard briefly between the people inside. Rynn sat alone at a table and waited to be served, she noticed nobody came up to introduce themselves and she suddenly felt out of place.  
Looking down at herself, she was out of place with her winter furs whilst everyone else wore thin clothing as it was very warm in the Tavern. She muttered to herself and looked up to try and catch the waitress's attention, she realised she had to eat or drink something rather than just sit there feeling awkward.

Eventually, she was served and ordered a fried egg and bacon sandwich and waited patiently for it to arrive. "Excuse me, miss? I couldn't help noticing you were the dragon rider. What's it like to fly around on the back of a dragon?" A young man asked suddenly walking over to sit down opposite.  
Rynn gave a weak smile. "Well, its difficult to describe but its a wonderful experience" Rynn said quietly.  
The young man grinned "I wonder if I will ever get the chance to bond" he mused.  
"Maybe" Rynn said taking a bite of her sandwich that had just arrived on the table. It didn't look very appetising but she ate it nevertheless.

"So, is it usually this quiet around here? I mean surely the Wartocks would attack frequently" Rynn asked after a short silence.  
The young man gestured to a knight stood by the bar. "They keep them at bay but attacks are inevitable, thankfully few and far between" he said.  
"Ill try and find out more about these local Wartock tribes later. I have to go now, Ill see you later" Rynn answered and got up leaving the sandwich half eaten.  
The man stood up and went back over to the group he was standing with earlier and immediately they all burst out in conversation talking quietly so Rynn did not hear.  
She sighed wondering if she would ever fit in with Surdana's community and left the tavern to sell Bonegrinder's staff at the blacksmiths on the other side of the Town Square.  
As she walked across the square, a frightened man ran up to her from one of the houses on her left.

"Excuse me, but could you help me?" The man panted.  
Concerned, Rynn looked behind him, there was nothing. "What's the matter?" she asked.  
"Spiders, big ones... came through a hole in the wall... now they are in my cellar."  
"Hold on" Rynn said sharply. "You want me to kill the spiders for you?"  
"Yes" the man replied. "They are big ones, I can't face them myself."  
Reluctantly, Rynn agreed to check it out. "Okay. Ill see what I can do, wait here" she instructed.

Cautiously, Rynn entered the house. She drew a sharp breath at the site in front of her; it was like a palace! "_So, this is how the rich live? Very nice_" she thought to herself. The house consisted of two rooms with solid oak floors and a magnificent four poster bed at one end of the main room. The blankets were made from the finest materials and expensive ornaments were on the tables and the stone mantelpiece. The house even had a carpet in the sleeping area. She thought of her home back in her village - a small house about the quarter of the size, which she had to make do with. Her home had an upper floor used for storage of clothes, food etc but it was still tiny in comparison.  
A large roaring fire burnt in the fireplace and several magical torches lit the room with a cosy glow_. "Well, this is really nice_" she thought to herself observing a painting of the countryside around Surdana hanging on the wall.

"I wonder if Lady Myschala would give me a place like this?" She thought out loud walking over to a bookcase. She picked up a book and saw that it was a story about a couple of dragons before the Order, in fact most of the books were about times long past. "This guy likes Drakan's history" she mumbled.  
Putting the book down, she got back to what she had come for; kill the spiders in the cellar. Although she was inquisitive, she felt that she should not be going through other people's possessions.

The cellar door creaked open and she walked down into the cool rooms below. A familiar pattering noise sounded nearby and a large spider came into view. "My god, look at the size of these things!" She exclaimed. She soon got to work; the flamestrike cutting through them like butter, a lot easier than killing the spiders with a shortsword back in the Shadowmire.

A few moments later, Rynn could see where the spiders were entering the house. The house backed onto the Shadowmire swamp and one of the walls had a large hole where a few bricks had been pushed through by a fallen tree. "Ill soon stop that" she said as she began to stack empty wine barrels in front of the hole. Standing back to admire her handiwork, she checked around to see if she had missed any and returned to the homeowner outside.

"There, they are all dead and I blocked up the hole in the wall" she explained.  
"Oh thankyou. Here take this" the man said gratefully offering her a few small gold coins. It wasn't enough to buy anything at all and she felt slightly miffed that the man was obviously loaded and could have given her more. She felt like saying something but realised she would have sounded ungrateful.  
"Thanks" she mumbled and walked over to the blacksmiths to sell Bonegrinder's staff and to buy some better armour. She also stopped by the alchemists to purchase a few health potions to see her through the inevitable battles ahead.

Rynn had lost the sense of time with the little side quest she got caught up with. Glancing over to the tavern, she could see that Arokh was not waiting so she took the time to look around the city. She wondered what houses were available and she noticed that whilst they were on the way to the Shadowmire, there were a couple of houses very similar in design to hers just out of town.  
Inquisitive, she wandered out of the gates and crossed the bridge over the river taking her back to the fork in the path which one led to Shadowmire and the other to the two houses below.

Still curious, she made her way down to the first one seeing a weary old woman picking flowers in the well kept garden. "What do you want?" The old woman snapped as Rynn got closer. She could see that the woman was obviously poorer than the inhabitants who lived within Surdana's walls. She was dressed like a peasant would dress, in fact the sight reminded her very much of her hometown.  
"I'm just looking around." Rynn said quietly.

Just then, Arokh landed beside her alarming the old woman. "Ah, Rynn. I was beginning to wonder where you got to" he said. "You weren't outside the tavern so I came looking for you."  
"Sorry Arokh, I got side-tracked" Rynn apologised.  
"So you are the dragon rider" the old woman butted in. "Go on, get lost, we don't want any dragon riding witches around here." She said angrily waving a sweeping brush in a threatening manner.  
"Oh" Rynn said taken aback.  
"Excuse me!" Arokh shouted. "You insult my bonded, you insult me. How dare you be so rude, apologise at once or I will report you."

The old woman didn't even flinch at the sound of the dragon's furious voice, she carried on regardless as if he wasn't there.  
"I said apologise" Arokh shouted.  
"Go on, get lost, I'm not apologising to you... you ugly reptile." She snapped.  
"Ugly reptile!" Arokh roared his eyes boiling with fury. "Your lucky you are a human. If you were anything else you would be dead by now" he snarled.  
Rynn put a hand on his side. "Leave it Arokh. She is just a rude miserable old woman. Come on, I am ready to go to Ravenshold if you are."

A little calmer Arokh agreed. "I'm sure as ever. Come on, we must get going; every minute counts. I suspect Jassad, the leader of the Desert Lords has already found out we opened the first gate and he will almost certainly try and stop us."

"What were you doing down there anyway?" Arokh questioned as they flew away towards the gate.  
"Nothing really, I just wanted to look at the houses."  
"Oh, thinking of the future I see" Arokh laughed turning towards the gateway flying over Lady Myschala's palace.

"Hold on Arokh. I have some money left. Can we call by Jade's tower to see if she can teach me some spells?"  
"Later Rynn. We don't have much time. Anyhow, your archery and melee skills are good enough to get us through the tasks ahead. Furthermore, you have me." He ended with a smile.  
"Okay" Rynn agreed reluctantly and soon they were back in the city of Ravenshold.Chapter Eighteen: Enemy Unknown

"Now, let's see what we can find out about these lands" Rynn suggested as Arokh set down by the fire burning in the town centre.  
"Could you spare a moment?" Rynn asked the man tending the fire.  
"No, I have to keep this fire burning or Ranwolfe will have my head" he grunted.  
"Polite I see" Arokh noted.  
"Hmm" Rynn murmured jumping down from the dragon's back.  
"Do you want me to have a word? I can apply my more forceful methods" Arokh said quietly.  
"No, leave it." Rynn said knowing that Arokh may well loose his temper and they wanted the Northmen on their side. "Ill ask around, you warm yourself by the fire. I won't be long."

Rynn knocked on the door of the nearest house which also served as a clothing store, the solid wooden door needing a lot of effort to make some noise that could be heard.  
"Come in" a voice sounded eventually.  
Rynn entered into the dark wooden shack; it was only lit by the fire and a single lantern on a table where a man sat with his feet up on the table staring at Rynn.  
"Hmm" he mumbled to himself bending over to empty the ash from his pipe into a wastebasket. "Well, what do you want?" He demanded now looking back at the weary looking woman.

Rynn thought for a moment and began to ask about the Northlands. "I'm wanting to know what can be found in the lands around here and in which direction the Halfmen come from" she said.

The man shuffled about on his chair and let out a fart smiling to himself when he saw Rynn's disgusted look. "You want to know about the Northern Tundra? Well let's see. There is a temple to the east, a couple of Grull camps, various caves and nothing else much apart from wilderness." He explained in a slow voice as if he could not be bothered to talk to her.  
"What hostile creatures are they around here?" Rynn continued, still eager for information.  
"Grull, Wartocks, Yeti. Yes, Yeti; they were thought to be extinct but a couple of us have seen them. There's blackwings, ice bats and apart from that nothing else much. Now if you don't mind I'm busy. Close the door on the way out." He said ending the conversation.  
Rynn looked despondent for a moment; the man clearly wasn't busy, he just couldn't be bothered. She realised she wasn't going to get any more information out of him and left closing the door behind with a slam.

"Find anything?" Arokh asked as she mounted him.  
"There is nothing here but wilderness. We should see Ranwolfe to ask the way to the Halfmen's lands, the people here seem rude idiots" Rynn said exasperated.  
Arokh didn't reply and walked up to Ranwolfe's hut. "Well, go on in, we haven't got all day" he said to Rynn when she did not dismount.  
"Oh, I thought you were going to shout him" Rynn said jumping down sinking to her chest in the soft snow. Arokh smiled to himself at the sight and pulled her out of the snowdrift with a front foreleg and placed her in front of him.  
Rynn shook herself down and knocked at Ranwolfe's door.

"Ah, glad you came back. I was just going to tell you the way to Shiverbane" he said welcoming her into his home.  
"Shiverbane?" Rynn questioned.  
"Its the Half-men's homeland." Ranwolfe informed.  
"Oh, right, we were just coming to ask you the same thing." Rynn replied closing the door.  
Ranwolfe showed her to a chair and he sat down opposite at a table. "Shiverbane is higher up in the mountains. It's a lot colder than here, the Halfmen make their homes in caves and caverns cut into the ice itself. There is a different breed of dragon that lives up there which breathes solid ice shards so be careful."  
"I will" Rynn muttered.

Ranwolfe began to explain. "To get there, follow the path through the valley beyond the city, there you will find a tunnel cut into the mountainside which leads to the Northern Tundra. You can just fly over or around the mountains but it's a handy short cut. Okay, once there, again follow the tundra and it will eventually merge into Shiverbane; you will see where as its pretty obvious. The mountain at the end of the Tundra is actually a huge glacier; the river that flows through these lands is water, which has come from the melting glacier. In winter, these rivers freeze over."

Rynn took it all in, the directions were pretty simple and surely Arokh had a good sense of direction. "Okay, thanks for your time" she said making for the door.  
"Oh, I forgot. We have an outpost in the Tundra, stop by if you need any supplies." Ranwolfe said raising his voice so Rynn would stop. "Oh and good luck" he added as she opened the door and was gone.

The journey to the outpost took them the most of the morning as it was difficult to navigate through the thick snowfall and mist that clung to the mountains. Blackwings made travelling dangerous and the great red dragon was always on edge keeping a lookout for danger.  
On the ground, Rynn collected any items that were of use such as gold and healing potions from the Grull camps that were scattered throughout the Northern Tundra and around Ravenshold. The bow, which the Grull named 'Hoarfrost' came into Rynn's possession when she stopped by to explore a cave used by the Grull as a base.

Eventually, as they neared the next bend in the canyon, humans could be seen below in a large clearing where a large fire burnt. Arokh landed and Rynn dismounted running up to a group of men huddled around the fire for the harsh wind and snow was unforgiving, even to men wearing the thickest of clothes. They was not alarmed by Rynn's presence but as soon as they saw Arokh, they leapt to their defence surrounding the dragon so he could not get away.  
"Stay back. I mean you no harm" he grated eyeing the men with glowing red eyes.  
"It's okay. He is with me" Rynn shouted beginning to walk over to where she left Arokh.  
"And you are?" One of the men asked sharply, his hand placed firmly on his sword so he could draw it if need be.

"I am Rynn and this is Arokh, a dragon of the Elder Breed. Ranwolfe said we could find supplies and shelter here" she said, introducing herself and her fiery companion.  
The man continued to stay on edge but after what seemed like an eternity, he relaxed. "Okay, so you are friends of Ranwolfe. Go on inside but one of us will accompany you; we have had Desert Lords come by here before and they can disguise themselves as humans. I'm sure you understand" he said hoping his explanation would forgive their hostility.  
"I understand. Arokh, would you mind?" She asked, carefully choosing her words so not to appear like she was treating Arokh like a taxi. Dragons hated being taken advantage of and as far as he was concerned, there was no need for them to stop by the outpost as time was of the essence.  
"No, but don't be long" he replied sitting down in the cold snow watching to make sure he didn't sit on any of the Northmen.

Whilst Rynn was gathering information and food, Arokh waited patiently. He glared at the men surrounding him and neither him nor they spoke and there was a tense atmosphere.  
Arokh rolled his eyes and let out a low growl as the silence began to anger him. "Stand at ease. I won't attack" he said quietly to the men in front trying to break the tension.  
The guards obeyed and the ones behind the red dragon walked round to join their companions around the fire but not one of them turned their backs on the dragon. "Forgive me for being rude dragon, but who are you to tell us to stand at ease?" One of them said; he didn't want to argue with the dragon but wanted an explanation.

A glare of anger flashed in the dragon's eye and straightaway the guard knew he had made a wrong move. He stepped back a couple of feet and looked up at the dragon.  
"Who am I? I tell you who I am!" Arokh snarled, angry but trying to keep his temper. "I am Arokh, destroyer of Navaros and the Dark Union, saviour of all Drakan. I was awakened by Rynn and now we make up part of the New Order of the Flame so don't you dare question my authority!"  
"The Order? That's just a story isn't it?" The guard continued.  
Arokh bared his teeth in anger. "Yes, but a true story!"  
"I'm sorry Arokh, but I don't know much about the Order and I don't know your background" he apologised thinking it would be best if he just shut up.

Arokh breathed out sharply, his breath forming in a large misty cloud. "Well, it was six centuries ago, I can't expect everyone to know about my heroic antics" he said with a smile. "Be aware though; if we are successful, you will be seeing a lot more of the Order of the Flame and the Elder Breed. Just take one tip from me; don't argue with a dragon of the Order."  
The guardsman nodded "Well, I won't and I'm sorry for being hostile. Shake on it?" He said extending his hand towards the dragon.  
"Shake on it?" Arokh questioned cocking his head to one side puzzled by what he had just heard. He looked down at the man's extended hand and frowned.  
"Oh I forgot I was talking to a dragon, it kinda does not work. Forget it." The guard laughed.  
"No really, what do you mean?" Arokh asked.  
The guard sighed. "Okay, put your hand, foot, claw whatever in mine and shake it up and down."  
Arokh obeyed and then placed his foot back down on the ground. "What was that in aid of?"  
"It's a way of showing that two people have agreed on settling a dispute" he explained.  
"Oh. Ill bear that in mind" Arokh said and walked closer to the fire. The other guards quickly moved out of his way as he sat down beside them.

Half an hour later, Rynn had not come back and Arokh was becoming impatient. "Where has she got to?" He grumbled.  
"Give her a shout, she can't be far" someone suggested.  
Arokh frowned and stood up walking to the cave entrance. It was too narrow for him to enter so he just stuck his head through and shouted "Rynn! What are you doing in there?"  
The dragon's voice boomed through the tunnels, even he was surprised by the loudness of his own voice. A short while later, he was answered.  
"I'm coming, just give me a few minutes" Rynn shouted back, her voice sounding awfully distant. Eventually she showed up at the cave entrance clutching a small cloth bag which she tied to her belt.

"What's that?" Arokh asked.  
"Healing potions and another Invulnerability potion. It was expensive but you never know when they come in handy" she said. Straightaway, Arokh noticed the smell of food on her breath.  
"Lunch already?" He commented "That's all you think about is your stomach, I'm surprised you have a slim figure with what you eat!" He laughed trying to add some humour to the tense atmosphere.  
Rynn smiled. "Well, thanks for the compliment but I don't eat that much."  
"Really" Arokh said sarcastically but Rynn knew he didn't mean to be nasty; it was just his sense of humour.  
"Come on, we had better get going" Arokh demanded letting Rynn mount him.

"Heh, heh, you got yourself a nice chick there Arokh" one of the men shouted raising up his bottle of spirit.

"Shut up" Rynn hissed turning her head round to look at the man who had just spoken. Arokh smiled to himself and did not speak. "Well, aren't you going to say something?" Rynn objected at the dragon's silence.

"They are only being friendly" Arokh noted. "After all, they may well be our future allies."

"I think he was rude" Rynn muttered as Arokh began to walk away.

"He was only being comical" Arokh disagreed.

This statement got Rynn's back up straightaway. "Well, you would take his side wouldn't you? Typical male, always thinking about sex and showing off."

Arokh laughed loudly. "Well, I admit to being a bit of a show off."

"Yeah, you are. When you go anywhere, it's like 'look everybody, here's Arokh. Look how handsome and powerful he is, let's all bow down to his greatness.' Talk about liking to be the centre of attention" Rynn snapped.

Arokh grinned. "It's not like that at all. I'm just different. And I am handsome and powerful" he added.

"I'm sorry Arokh" Rynn apologised.

"It does not matter" the dragon answered as he flew up into the air. Both of them had a smile across their faces.

It was another hour before they reached the borders of the Half-men's lands. The snow had almost stopped enabling the red dragon to see further as he cut through the icy cold air, the frost forming on his leathery wings. Rynn pulled her clothes tighter and rubbed her hands against her furs, she could feel them stinging with the cold, wishing she had bought some gloves when she had the opportunity.

Arokh began a steep decent and landed on an ice covered path. Looking behind, Rynn could see there was a large cave behind them, its entrance blocked by a mound of rocks and ice that had been brought down by a recent avalanche.  
Suddenly, a large vaguely human form burst from a tent on the pathside and started waving its arms as if it was trying to attract attention.  
"Umma rumla swampy!" it seemed to say. Arokh swivelled his head round startled at the sound and fixed his eyes on the grey-blue skinned creature. "Umra rumla swampy!" it shouted again, by now Rynn had noticed.

"It seems we are spotted," she said quietly.  
"It would appear so, yes" Arokh mumbled looking around uneasily expecting something to happen. "Something is not quite right" he continued as the creature ran away retreating to his tent. Rynn kept looking at the tent half expecting a small army to rush out but suddenly a ball of ice crashed into the path almost hitting them.  
"Dragons!" Rynn cried as Arokh took off to deal with the arial foe swooping and dodging the onslaught of icy missiles. Arokh had a hard time killing the creature but eventually, his superior skill sent the winged beast crashing to the floor.

Arokh glided down and stood beside the fallen beast looking it over with interest.  
"What's so interesting?" Rynn asked climbing down from his back to see what he was looking at.  
The dragon raised his head to look at Rynn. "It's a half breed. Something that is very rare - a cross between an Elder Breed and an Ice bat."  
"It looks like Werokh" Rynn noted seeing that it was covered in thick fur rather than scales, exactly like Arokh's dead friend.  
Arokh gave a sad smile "You are correct. Werokh must have been the same species of dragon this descended from although Werokh was a true Elder Breed dragon."

"Umra rumla Swampy!" sounded again from nearby. Arokh looked up to see the creature they first saw running towards them, its weapon held firmly in its hand. Without hesitating, he unleashed a stream of flame killing the large creature in a few moments. He put out the flame by kicking snow over its body so he could see what it was.  
"So, this is a half-man" he growled kicking the snow off its body. Rynn came closer to examine it; the creature was human in shape and was about twice her height with a strong muscular body covered in grey-blue leathery skin. It wore some sort of cloth around its groin and carried a large battle-axe and a shield in the other. Its face looked like a goblin and was withered with age. It certainly wasn't a young creature and Rynn hoped that the rest would be smaller.

"They seem easy enough to kill" Arokh remarked "but these ice dragons seem to be their allies. We should exercise caution."  
"Easy for you to kill. Maybe not for me" Rynn grumbled putting her sword away.  
"There's your negative side again" Arokh smiled. "Be positive... Come on, we need to find the second gate."

"Where do you think this second gate is?" Rynn asked after they had been flying for a while. They had explored a few Halfmen camps on the ground but nothing indicated the location of the gate. There was nothing but frozen wasteland with the odd clumps of trees dotted around and a thick mist hung in the air.  
"I would say there used to be a city or large town around here at one point. The gateway should be close" Arokh replied, his warm breath showing in gusty clouds as he spoke.  
"Here!" Rynn exclaimed "Why would anyone have a city high in the mountains?"  
"Dragons" Arokh noted. "There is probably a network of caves in these mountains where dragons made their homes. The gateway would have been used for them to quickly get to the rest of the world. Now, it appears the Halfmen live here."

Rynn didn't reply and shivered, the cold wind was almost unbearable. "Maybe its underground?"  
Arokh turned his head in a questioning manner and was about to speak when Rynn answered his question. "The gate" she said.  
"Not likely. It will be on the surface somewhere" he said thoughtfully "Keep your eyes open."

They travelled further encountering more of the fur-covered dragons and Halfmen. Some carried a bow and arrow and hid amongst the trees where they could gain advantage over the great red dragon and were a serious threat especially when the dragon stopped occasionally to see what was below. However, his eyesight was sharp and they were easily spotted out in the open against the bright white snow and the dragon killed all on sight. The mountains were becoming narrower until they ended up in a narrow canyon, the trees were becoming less dense as they got higher and higher. Eventually, something caught Rynn's eye - something that looked out of place in the bleak wilderness.

"What's that?" Rynn exclaimed noticing a huge wooden door in the base of a mountain. The red dragon peered in the direction she was looking and was about to say 'its a door' sarcastically when a loud bellow sounded from below.  
"A Yeti. Look out" he snarled dodging to miss a huge snowball. Suddenly a bolt of energy hit him in the chest knocking the breath out of him. Looking up he saw it came from some sort of defence tower fastened to a natural bridge over the canyon.  
He hastily retreated to a safe place and landed, sinking in the soft snow.

"Its well guarded I see. There must be something important in there" he said quietly glaring in the direction of where the attack came from.  
"Maybe" Rynn suggested wearily looking up at the towering mountains. She laid herself flat against the dragon's back whilst he was sitting to warm herself more. Despite what she was wearing, the cold wind chilled her to the bone and slowed her progress as her hands were numb. "Arokh, I'm cold" she muttered.

"I know. So am I" he answered slowly. "Here, dismount me" he continued squatting slightly to let Rynn off. She obeyed and stood at his side. "What?" She asked when he remained silent.

Arokh flopped down in the snow and sat more or less upright on his hind legs. "Here, stand against my chest" he beckoned putting one of his front legs around her and pulling her close to him. "That better?" He asked.

"Much better, thanks" Rynn mumbled pressing herself tighter against him feeling the slight warmth from beneath his scales. Arokh rubbed her back with one of his front feet and patted her as she put her head in his armpit to warm her face.

There was a long silence where neither of them spoke. Rynn was happy though as she was enjoying the warmth and the stinging feeling on her exposed skin was starting to subside. The sound of the dragon's gentle breathing and his slight body scent offered some sense of relief as she knew that she was safe from harm. She eventually realised that they couldn't stay there all day and pulled away from him, the dragon looking down on her lovingly for a moment as if he was protecting one of his own offspring. It seemed to her that he also enjoyed their quiet moment together but she didn't mention anything.

"Couldn't we just fly around the mountain to reach the other side?" She asked looking up into the rocky peaks thoughtfully.

The dragon scratched absently at the underside of his jaw. "I doubt it. The door must open to a tunnel through the mountain and you can bet that's where the gate is" he answered in disappointment.  
Rynn noticed his attitude. "Now you are being negative. Be positive remember?" she said with a smile.  
Arokh grinned slightly noting her humour. "The yeti is easy to deal with but I don't know about that tower, I haven't seen anything like it before" he continued.  
"What? Macho Arokh who can deal with any threat and deals death to anything that gets in his way? Come on!" Rynn said surprised that her partner was not his usual confident self.  
"Optimistic I see." Arokh said getting to his feet. "Very well, this big red flying death machine will deal with it. Get on."  
Rynn mounted, healing potion in her hand and together they flew towards the tower, streams of brilliant flame bursting from the dragon's jaws.

Meanwhile, Jassad, the emperor of the Desert Lords had noticed that the gateways in Surdana and Ravenshold were open and that his forces were unable to stop them; some of the beings Rynn and Arokh encountered were in fact Desert Lords serving as spies, but they were completely unaware.  
"Useless Wartocks!" He snapped stomping up and down his palace floor. "I thought they were the elite force of the Dark Union and they can't even kill a dragon and a pathetic human!"  
"Perhaps the Halfmen would be more successful" one of Jassad's generals pointed out. He ducked slightly; he hated it when his master was angry.

"They had better be or they will suffer the same fate of the humans of this world. See to it that two messengers are sent to Shiverbane immediately; I want to inform Mulgalak of our progress and to warn him of Arokh."  
"Certainly" the general bowed and left the palace to carry out his master's task.

Back in Surdana, Lady Myschala was writing the events of the previous day in her diary when general Dherimon walked into the room.  
"Ah General. Have you heard from Arokh today?" She said standing up from the table.  
"Yes, he came by this morning. He and Rynn opened the gate in Ravenshold and are on their way to Shiverbane, in fact they are probably there by now" he answered boldly. They even managed to take care of Snotmaw so we are safer from Wartock attacks for the time being and it gives our men more chance to prepare.  
"Excellent. I knew the dragon would do well, he is a good fighter and we can certainly put our trust in him. I just hope he does not let that Rynn get her own way... such a stubborn woman."  
General Dherimon laughed. "I'm sure Arokh has her under his thumb so to speak."  
"He could do with teaching her some manners" Myschala grumbled walking over to the window. The view outside looked so peaceful; smoke could be seen rising from Wartock camps beyond the city walls indicating there was evil still lurking outside despite Arokh's best efforts. She sighed and wondered what the world would be like in a few years. Justice would be done... eventually.

Back in Shiverbane, Rynn and Arokh had managed to reach the huge door and were looking around to find some way of opening it.  
"There must be something!" Rynn said in desperation, thinking that they had come so far to be stopped by something so simple. Arokh refused to try and fly around the mountain and she didn't want to ask him again.  
Suddenly, Arokh's eyes lit up in surprise as the huge door swung open revealing an unnatural icy tunnel cut through the glacier itself. Somebody or something had opened it but not from their side.

"Shall we enter?" He asked, his red eyes glittering against the orange-red scales around his face.  
"I don't see why not. But be aware it may be a trap" Rynn replied blowing on her hands to warm them.  
"I think I know that" Arokh growled sarcastically and entered the tunnel. All was quiet as he slowly walked down the central path taking care as the floor was very slippery and even his claws couldn't get a grip.  
"Ambush!" Arokh shouted suddenly as a huge crowd of Halfmen came running down the tunnel towards them. Straightaway, Arokh fired balls of flame killing many but some still managed to get through and came further towards them undeterred at their companion's misfortune.

"What's the matter? Kill them!" Rynn shouted seeing that Arokh didn't attack.  
"I'm not a living fireball you know. I have to let my breath regenerate" he snapped. "It will take a couple of minutes."  
"We don't have a couple of minutes" Rynn objected. "Retreat, go back the way we came."  
"That's not possible. The doors closed behind us. You will have to get off and fend for yourself, there are only a dozen or so. Go on, Ill be right behind you" Arokh said lifting his back into the air in an attempt to push her off.  
Rynn obeyed and took a stance in front of the mighty dragon. His words offered some comfort but she was unsure about the threat looming ahead. She took a deep breath and ran at the nearest Halfman, the flamestrike held firmly in her hands.

Swords and axes clashed followed by cries of agony both human and inhuman. Arokh defensively followed his bonded to back her up but the Halfmen were not frightened of the beast and ignored him. With an angry snarl, Arokh lunged at one of the Halfmen with his front claws landing on its shoulders knocking it to the ground, Arokh then standing firmly on its chest pushing with all his strength until a horrible snapping sound was heard. The Halfmen's ribcage shattered and the broken end of a rib penetrated the lungs and heart leading to a painful death. Rynn was still occupied by the first Halfman but its companion was closing in fast.

"Rynn! Behind you!" Arokh yelled, there was nothing he could do as he was too far away. Rynn immediately ducked and rolled sideways doing a neat backflip and slashing at its legs with the sword. The Halfman howled in pain and crumpled to the floor. A few seconds later, Rynn's fiery companion was on it, his jaws firmly clamped around its neck riving at it until the head came off in his mouth. He quickly spat it out looking up to see Rynn finishing off the first Halfman. She was injured and limped about painfully trying her best to stay alive, the slippery floor was making it harder as she kept falling.

Rynn breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Arokh say "Rynn! Get out of the way!" she knew his breath weapon had regenerated. She dived onto the icy floor sliding along towards him crashing into his front legs nearly making him loose his balance. She just about managed to get underneath him when a huge cloud of flame erupted from his jaws incinerating the last of the Halfmen and melting the ice.  
Rynn breathed heavily and observed the scene in front of her. The floor of the tunnel was turned into a icy slush, reddened by the blood of the Halfmen and charred corpses lay amongst the whole mess.  
"That was close" she panted getting to her feet. She began to walk further into the tunnel, the dragon following behind, the clicking of his claws on the ice making a comforting sound. Whenever Arokh was with her, she felt safe and she was glad of his company.

Eventually, they reached the end of the tunnel where another huge door blocked their progress. Again, there was no obvious way of opening it. "Not again" Rynn said bitterly.  
Arokh walked up to the door and nudged at a rotten looking panel with his nose. As he half expected, the panel gave way leaving a hole big enough for Rynn to go through.  
"There Rynn. You go on and see if there is a lever on the other side" he suggested pushing her forward with one of his feet. He noticed her expression as she turned round to face him. "You will be fine. Go!"  
She nodded and disappeared through the hole but returned a couple of minutes later. "Well then?" Arokh grunted quirking an eye ridge and fixing Rynn with an questioning red eye.

"Nothing" Rynn grumbled. Arokh shoulders sagged slightly. "You are going to have to go through on your own and try and find a way of getting me through."  
"I knew you would say that" she complained bitterly. Arokh noticed her attitude and angrily replied "For goodness sakes Rynn. Have confidence in yourself! You have good weapons. Just try and use your bow and arrows whenever you can and keep moving."  
"Wartocks, Grull are easy but these are difficult creatures to kill and I'm unsure of their tactics" she said then noticed the look in Arokh's eyes. "But Ill manage them nevertheless." She added in a quieter more apologetic voice.  
"That's better. Now will you please go? I'm freezing in here." Arokh said in a more friendly voice as a way of apologising for being nasty.  
Rynn grinned as an overwhelming feeling of confidence suddenly rushed through her. "No problem, Ill see what I can do. Oh and by the way Arokh, thanks for the warming hug back there, I really appreciate it. You know, I bet you can be quite romantic".

Arokh grinned. "Don't mention it…. Romantic?" he questioned. "Yeah" Rynn answered and leant forward to kiss the side of his face and then knelt rolling through the small hole in the door. Arokh shrugged his shoulders and made himself as comfortable as he could on the freezing ground.

Almost immediately an arrow whizzed past her head missing her and landing in the soft snow beside her. She was in a small rocky bowl overlooked by a path going around the most of its perimeter. A lookout tower stood on the right hand side and a cave entrance could be seen on the left. She didn't want to waste time standing there like a sitting duck so she just ran straight ahead around a rock pile and straight into a group of Halfmen.  
"Oh crap" she muttered and pulled out her sword. Suddenly, she had a better idea; turning around and running back to Arokh.

"Back so soon?" The red dragon asked craning his neck closer.  
The breathless Rynn just about managed to point towards the hole through which Arokh could see the advancing Halfmen.  
"Oh, I see" he grinned and pushed his head through the door. The unsuspecting Halfmen stopped dead unsure of their fate; they did not expect to see a dragon in there. Uneasily, one of them began to retreat whilst the other two decided to attack pulling their bows from their backs and loading them. However the dragon was quicker and engulfed them in a cloud of deadly flame, they didn't even have time to aim and fire.

"Thanks Arokh" Rynn muttered now having got her breath back.  
"You know you just can't keep coming back to be for help" he grumbled.  
"Well, I was trying to avoid the archers. Ill use my stealth tactics" Rynn answered shortly. She tried to stand but slipped on the ice.  
"Here, let me help you" Arokh offered holding out a front leg. Rynn grasped his foot as he helped her up and the dragon frowned; he was becoming a little worried about Rynn's confidence. He grasped her shoulder and shook her slightly. "Look at me in the eyes when I'm talking to you. You must be more confident Rynn, there will be harder battles to fight later and I can't manage it on my own. I really need you and I'm not just saying that."

Rynn stared blankly and tried to push his foot away but his grasp was firm. The dragon let out a sigh. "I know your feelings for me Rynn. For me to feel the same about you, I need someone I can depend on. I know you are a capable fighter, you truly are the best warrior I have seen possibly even better than Heron. Come on eh? We must not let each other down."  
Rynn smiled slightly. "I'm sorry Arokh, I'm not myself since the death of my brother. You are the only family I have now, Ill try not to disappoint you."  
Arokh nodded and let go of her shoulder understanding her loss and how she felt. "_Perhaps that's why she showed so much emotion towards me when I left her in her village to bury the dead_" he thought. _Perhaps._

"_For me to feel the same about you._" She thought. "_That means he does love me_. _He certainly can be thoughtful and kind and very caring; he obviously has deep feelings for me. His foul temper is the only problem… hmm, I will have to learn to overlook that._"

"I had better show my willing to help him even though it probably is a load of nonsense" she whispered to herself as she walked back towards where the three Halfmen were standing.

The path split into two paths at some old ruins. Rynn decided to look amongst the fallen stones to see if anything was of any use. A few barrels were stood up against the stones under a ledge to shelter them from the snowfall. Rynn decided to break one open carefully and found a handful of coins, an invisibility potion and a few healing potions. "At least these will help" she muttered walking out from behind the stones. She decided to take the left path leading up to where one of the archers were stood. Carefully, she walked through a short cave and squatted down behind some crates.  
"Now to see how effective this lightning spell is on Halfmen" she said out aloud drawing the elemental powers to bring forth lightning. She remembered it exactly as Master Sevoth told her back in the Andrellian Isles.

The lightning bolt wasn't as effective as she had hoped. She was out of mana with only a couple of shots but the creature had now got her attention. Roaring with fury, it began to run straight at her. Rynn swallowed and pulled out the earth blade and swung at him but what happened startled both her and the Halfman. She had inadvertently touched the crystal embedded in the pommel and suddenly, the earth opened up and pulled the Halfman under then closed just as quickly as it had opened.  
Stunned, Rynn placed the sword back in its sheath and continued up the path. The sword did seem to have extraordinary magical properties.

Now more confident, Rynn ventured into the cave she could see from below killing a couple more Halfmen inside. Suddenly she stopped, she could hear voices below, and somebody was having a real good argument. Carefully, she crept nearer to the large cavern below and hid behind some boxes. She could see two Desert Lords and a huge Halfman, twice the size of the others below.

"I didn't have to help you" the Halfman shouted.  
"You did have to help us, Mulgalak" one of the Desert Lords snapped. "Jassad would have had you slaughtered like the humans" the other added.  
"It's not my fault" Mulgalak complained bitterly.  
"Look. I don't care for your incompetent... offspring... allies... whatever but listen to me. Make no mistake you WILL make sure the gate is never opened and kill that damned woman and the dragon. They are a real problem for us. You do know one gate has already been opened? If you had some intelligence, you would have destroyed the city of Ravenshold as instructed."  
"I know. The Northmen were stronger than anticipated." Mulgalak complained, angry with himself for failing. He suddenly stopped dead. "Arrgh, the woman is nearby, I can sense her"

The two Desert Lords, Indjya and Najeem looked at each other briefly. "Okay, we will take care of her. You see to it the gate is defended" Najeem snapped. Mulgalak nodded and disappeared down a tunnel to the side, a large wooden gate slamming shut behind him.  
Rynn stood up from the crates in full view. Both Desert Lords floated up to attack with their magical energy bolts. Rynn used the Hoarfrost bow to retaliate and found them surprisingly easy to defeat. All it needed was 3 to 4 arrows on each one to destroy them.

Rynn drank one of the healing potions and rubbed where the energy bolts had hit her. Their attacks were certainly powerful but they were very weak creatures she thought. If the Order did come back, they would certainly have no problem... they would be dead in no time. She wondered why they had managed to make so many of her own kind extinct.  
Rynn jumped down into the cavern below using some stacked crates to break her fall and began to explore Mulgalak's quarters whilst he was away.

There was quite a lot of gold he had stashed in chests in the sleeping areas, which Rynn helped herself to. It would be more use to her rather than him she thought as she smashed open another chest. Rynn noticed the human skeletons hanging from the ceiling - his 'trophies' - skeletons of warriors that had met a sticky end. Rynn shivered with the extreme cold and returned back to the fork in the path. She thought for a moment. It was probable that Mulgalak and his forces were heading towards the gate wherever it was and it seemed too quiet. She pulled her clothes tighter and began to follow the right hand path into another cave leading upward towards the lookout tower. She had to find a way of freeing Arokh and fast before they could bring in reinforcements.

Meanwhile, Arokh was getting bored. He thought about turning back and trying to find another way around but he had the feeling that Rynn would return soon. He didn't want her to worry where he had go to and he was relatively safe in the tunnel, nobody knew he was there. He yawned openly and sat down on the cold floor. Suddenly, a pain went through his head as if he was struck from behind but he heard nothing. Bewildered, he raised his front foot to touch the apparent wound but before he could touch it, the throbbing pain got more intense making his vision hazy. With a pain filled groan he collapsed to the floor letting out a loud growl of anger and pain as he passed out.

**Chapter Nineteen: Imprisoned****!  
**  
Rynn had spotted the elemental Ice Blade in a cave on the large plateau near the lookout tower but she was too hasty to realise that she had walked into a trap. Without any warning, the floor hinged open and she fell into a dark pit hitting her head on the rocks as she fell knocking her unconscious, her injury had affected her bonded Arokh.

An hour of so later, groaning in pain, Rynn eventually came around. Her head hurt where it had struck the rocks and the stony floor was bloodstained with her own blood. Rubbing her eyes, her blurred vision came more clear and she suddenly realised she was in a prison cell. She could see the other cells across the hall, empty bar a single skeleton. A mild panic began in her throat and she rolled over hoping to find her sword but the only thing in the cell was a wooden slop bucket and a broken chair. Her backpack had gone together with all of her healing potions. She ran her fingers through her hair stuck together with dried blood and walked over to the doorway, which was blocked by three vertical energy bars.

"How an I going to get out of here?" She asked herself quietly. Touching the bars meant certain death but there was room for her to put her arm between them. A lone Halfman guard patrolled the prison walking monotonously up and down, the thud of his feet becoming irritating as valuable time ticked away. As he walked past, Rynn noticed there was a bunch of keys attached to his waist belt. "_If only I could get those keys_" she thought. There was no other way out of the cell; all of the stones were solid and there were no windows, the only light came from the lit torches on the walls.  
Rynn leant against the wall pondering her situation and what Arokh was doing; surely he would be worried. "_What if he had been captured too?" _She thought remembering the Succubi capturing him a few days before. She had to go through hell and back to rescue him and she didn't want to do that again.

Suddenly, she had an idea. Magic! She remembered what Master Sevoth had taught her and to her joy she found she could still call forth the spell of lightning. She had no mana crystals so she knew she had to be accurate, she only had enough mana for three blasts.  
Seizing her chance, a bolt of lightning leapt from Rynn's hand hitting the guard as he walked past. The stunned creature stood there for a moment, the shock immobilising him. Rynn continued and to her amazement and joy, the guard crashed lifeless onto the floor outside her cell door, his keys landing beside him.  
Wondering if anyone had heard, she reached through the bars carefully trying not to touch them but they keys were just out of reach. "Damn" she muttered retreating back into her cell. Desperately looking around, she grabbed a leg from the broken chair and used it to knock the keys towards her.

"Thank the gods for that" she whispered taking them into her hands. The lock to disable the bars was just in reach, too easy she thought. A few seconds later, she was free and upon hearing voices ducked behind a stone pillar to hide. The Halfmen passed by unaware of her presence but they could soon come back so she had to move fast. There was nothing in the cells apart from a rusty mace which was not of much use but she took it anyway and began to look for a way out of the dungeons.

Rynn had been sneaking past Wartocks for most of her life. Since the death of her parents in a raid on their village, Rynn has had a bitter resentment towards the creatures and often accompanied the village 'warriors' on treks into their homelands. Stealth was an important tactic in getting deep into a Wartock's camp or base to retake a stolen item. Like Arokh, she had never encountered Halfmen until now but sneaking past them seemed to be easy.

Rynn hugged the wall hiding in the shadows. She could hear voices of at least two Halfmen nearby. A staircase led upwards out of the dungeon to her left but she had to go past the open doorway of the room the voices came from. A couple of shadows could be seen on the floor cast from the flickering torchlight within. For what seemed like hours, the shadows disappeared; Rynn knew she would now be out of eyesight. Quickly she tiptoed across the dungeon floor and ran up the stairs stopping at the top. In the room ahead, another Halfman was sharpening a weapon against a lathe; his back turned.

Seizing her chance, she ran across the room into the doorway ahead.  
"Wha.. Umra!" came from behind her as she was spotted. Looking back, she saw the Halfman turn around and come running over. With lightning responses, Rynn knocked the lever securing the portcullis open to the down position closing off the door with a loud clang. From what she could see, the portcullis could only be opened from her side. Smiling in its face, Rynn ran away from the Halfman crossing a large hall and into a natural tunnel again diving behind some crates in a dark corner when she heard footsteps.

"This is going to be hard" she muttered to herself as the Halfman passed by heading in the direction of the dungeon. It was obvious that the alarm would be raised soon so she decided to get moving running from her hiding place and into the torchlight. Continuing up the tunnel, it eventually led to a large room full of crates and several Halfmen were patrolling the area. A doorway could be seen to the right and a rocky overhang protruded over the cave where a few more Halfmen were stood on guard. Whatever the crates contained was very important.

Suddenly, the Halfmen seemed to go into a more alert position and began to search the area. The alarm had been raised and staying there would mean recapture; she had to move fast - the crates would give excellent cover. Standing up from her hiding place she was about to carefully make her way up into the room when something startled her.  
"Umra Rumla Swampy!" a Halfman shouted from above waving his arms about frantically and pointing in her direction. She had forgotten about the archers overlooking the storage cave.  
Rynn knew what 'Umra Rumla Swampy' meant; run away as fast as possible.  
"Oh crap" Rynn muttered and ran into the cave towards the open doorway avoiding the Halfmen using the crates as cover. Several arrows rained down on her hitting the floor and crates as she scurried around. Making a run for it, she dived into the doorway hugging the wall out of sight.

Several voices sounded in the storage area behind and sounds of crates being broken open were heard. They obviously thought she had hidden in a crate; they were big enough for a human to hide in. As Rynn looked around the room, her face lit up with joy; there, in front of her were all of her weapons and possessions. Frantically fumbling about, she collected them all and threw herself back against the wall as another arrow went past. Peeping around the corner, she saw a large group of Halfmen coming towards her. "Not good, not good" she grumbled and ran out of the room towards a wooden elevator, thankfully on the same level she was on. Stepping onto the platform, it automatically raised taking her several metres upwards to the next level. As soon as she stepped off, the lift began to descend meaning she would soon have unwanted company.

"Take this!" she shouted cutting the rope with her sword rendering the lift useless. At least now things were easier, she just hoped the tunnel ahead led her out of the base or she was done for.  
As Rynn had hoped, the tunnel led out into daylight but it wasn't into the snow-covered landscape she had hoped. She was standing in a large circular arena; its walls made of sturdy tree trunks. Another way out was ahead but as soon as Rynn walked into the arena, both huge wooden gates slammed shut.  
"Now what?" She said out aloud.  
"Now you die!" A voice came from behind. Rynn swivelled round on the heel of one foot and came face to face with Mulgalak, a Halfman about twice the size of the others.

"Arokh!" Rynn shouted out of desperation hoping he had found a way out of the ice tunnel but there was no reply.  
"It seems you are all alone" Mulgalak sneered looking down on her with scorn.  
"Likewise" Rynn muttered but loud enough for him to hear. "Tell me, Mulgalak, why do you help the Desert Lords?" Rynn questioned hoping for an intelligent answer.  
"It's none of your concern. But seem as you are going to die, I might as well tell you. You see, they are beings of immense power and have great plans for this world... too complex for your tiny mind to comprehend."  
"Hah!" Rynn snorted. "They plan to slaughter all humans and Halfmen once they have achieved their goals."  
"No, you were mis-informed. Humans are a disease of this planet and must be exterminated. Together with the Desert Lords we will rule the world" Mulgalak continued bending over her to try and look more imposing.  
"Wrong! Do you honestly believe Jassad? Come on. He plans to destroy you. Join me and Arokh and I will see to it that you and your allies are forgiven for your wrongdoings." Rynn pointed out desperately trying to persuade the Halfmen leader he was being misled and not to kill her.  
Mulgalak frowned. "No, impossible. If I stop you, my mission will be a success and I will be rewarded well."  
Rynn gave a sigh. "Its lies Mulgalak. The Order of the Flame is more superior and believes that all races have their right to live in this world."  
Mulgalak laughed loudly and wiped his eye. "You amuse me, really. But... I have had enough. Time for you to meet your end. My way."

Rynn stepped backwards uneasily; eyes fixed firmly on her opponent. How she wished for Arokh to be there at that moment... She began to slowly circle him eyes darting about looking for cover and a way out but there was nothing. Despite the freezing conditions, beads of sweat began to form on her forehead.

Mulgalak went into a stance as he drew power from the elements of the world around him unleashing a ring of ice spreading outwards in her direction. She quickly jumped over the wall of icy energy remembering that it was very similar to the trap activated when she got the ice blade on the way to Rimril's tower. Rynn retaliated with her lightning attack but her mana soon ran out, she would have to resort to melee combat as mana regenerated slowly. Mulgalak came running towards her with his axe swinging wildly. There was no time to fumble about for a mana potion now.

Rynn equipped the trusty Earthblade using its secondary attack in an attempt to suck Mulgalak into the ground but he was too strong and kept jumping up before the ground closed in around his legs. "No, flamestrike" Rynn muttered selecting the formidable armour piercing weapon again avoiding another ice ring attack.

Lunging at the oversized Halfman Rynn slashed with all her strength into his side swivelling round for another attack and then ducking and rolling to avoid his axe. Mulgalak too relied on mana and clearly it was running out as his ice ring attacks became less frequent and Rynn noticed he never stopped to drink a potion. "Easier I guess... maybe not" she grumbled as his axe slammed into the ground beside her sending up shards of ice and snow. There was no way her armour would protect her against that thing, one hit would slice her in two, there was only one way to defeat him - her unsurpassed agility.

Rynn continued to circle, her eyes fixed in concentration watching his every move. There was two ways out of this fight; death and victory, the former was not an option. Mulgalak howled as searing flames went up his legs from the Flamestrike's burning blade slowing him. He went into another stance as his mana recharged sufficiently for him to use one more ice ring attack but Rynn was too agile for it to be effective. Taking advantage of his momentary loss of defence whilst casting, Rynn thrust the flamestrike into his back aborting the spell. Severely weakened, Mulgalak collapsed and lashed out with his legs knocking Rynn to the floor. He made a grab for his axe but Rynn's sword was quicker landing on his arm cutting it off in one blow.

Crimson red blood gushed from the wound and Mulgalak cried out in pain. "Your last chance. Join us or be defeated" Rynn said sternly getting to her feet, showing some pity on the creature.  
"No. No way" he refused. "You won. Leave me to die in peace."  
Rynn was a little apprehensive of his attitude; there was no way he would just let her walk out of there. "Really?" she questioned.  
"Yes, go" Mulgalak panted painfully. He beckoned to a guard and the doors of the arena swung open. Shrugging, Rynn made a run for the gate in case he changed his mind. Gut reaction made her dive to the left; she didn't know why, she just did it. Mulgalak's axe crashed into the ground where she had just been stood, a close escape.

Rynn decided to carry on regardless towards the lookout tower that was seen on the path up ahead. She killed the watchman with arrows and ran over to the tower noting a large lever. It had to be the one that opened the gate! Pulling with all her strength, the huge wooden doors opened below and Arokh came walking through. She was so glad to see him.  
"Arokh up here!" She shouted.  
Arokh's great head turned towards the familiar voice and he flew up to greet his bonded.  
"Am I glad to see you" Rynn said thankfully walking up to him to pat his neck.  
"Likewise" the dragon answered brushing her shoulder with his jaws as a sign of affection. His warm breath on her face was a welcome relief from the stinging cold. "Did you find the gate?" He asked sternly as he thought of their purpose of being there in the first place.

Rynn looked back at her companion with a blank expression and the dragon's shoulders sank in exasperation and disappointment. "Well, what did you do? I blacked out back in that tunnel. What happened?"  
"Long story Arokh" Rynn said quietly and bitterly looking back up the path when she heard a sound but it was just snow sliding off some rocks. She looked back at the dragon and saw the look on his face. "Follow me. Ill tell you on the way."

Rynn began to walk back towards the arena, Arokh following behind.  
"I walked into this cave and it was a false floor. I hit my head on something and I don't know what happened after that. I awoke in a prison cell."  
"I guess you escaped" Arokh noted with a hint of sarcasm.  
"Barely. I almost killed Mulgalak as well... that reminds me. He is still alive. I tried to persuade him to join us but he refused. Perhaps you could persuade him?" she asked stopping to face the dragon.  
Arokh's quirked an eye ridge as he pondered the thought. "Good idea but I don't think we can trust them. Show me where this Mulgalak is" he demanded.

"In there" Rynn pointed out the arena where Mulgalak could still be seen lying bleeding on the floor.  
"I see you did a good job" the dragon smiled as he flew upwards and into the ring. Rynn ran after him through the gate.

"NO!" she cried as she saw Arokh engulfing Mulgalak in a cloud of flame. "What did you do that for?" she snapped as she caught up with him.  
"I told you we don't need such allies," Arokh said angrily. "We have more important matters. I saw the gate over at the far side of the arena; you can't see it from the ground. We should open it and return to Surdana as soon as possible."  
Rynn stopped to think for a moment. She remembered the trap where she saw the ice blade in the room ahead of the collapsing floor.  
"I want to check something out first. I saw the ice blade back in one of the caves and we should try and obtain it" Rynn objected.  
Arokh fell silent and eventually he answered. "Okay. Show me the way."

The Ice Blade was one of the easiest of the elemental blades to retrieve from its resting place. The trap where Rynn had fallen did not re-activate enabling her to walk straight into the shrine in which the Ice Blade rested. She had Arokh hold her should the trap activate but it was not necessary. As before, skeletal guardians looked over the blade but Rynn simply ran out of the way and back to the safety of her fiery companion.  
Together, they made a quick sweep of the bleak icy wasteland looking for lost artefacts and any remaining Halfmen who could report their presence to the Desert Lords and returned to the gate. Within seconds the gate hummed with life and in a white flash the view ahead changed from snow covered mountains and hills to the glorious sight of Surdana City.

The evening sun started to spread its glow over the city as Rynn and Arokh emerged from the gate, the palace casting a huge shadow across the Town Square. Arokh narrowed his eyes and blinked to avoid the direct sunlight as he dipped his wings to land near the alchemists.  
"The first thing I should do is get rid of some of these weapons, they are becoming too heavy" Rynn suggested as she climbed from the dragon's scaled back.  
"Okay" Arokh replied shuffling to get rid of an itch under his scales. Rynn crossed the square and entered the blacksmiths to spend some of the money taken back from her enemies she had collected on her way through the Northlands.

"Ah, you again? You're going to make me a rich man!" Brekk exclaimed as the tired and weary woman walked up to the counter. She gave him a quick smile and handed him the earth and lightning blades.  
"Take care of these will you? I might be back for them later," Rynn asked getting straight for the point, not bothering with pleasantries.  
Brekk nodded and put them to one side. "Now what can I get you?"  
Rynn stood there for a moment and eventually replied "I need a new bow, this is too short and my armour is worn. What do you have? I have more money now" she said with a smile revealing a handful of coins.

Brekk's face lit up with a broad grin. "Erhum.. Lets see, for that much I have this nice scale armour" He said walking over to a suit towards the back of the shop. "Yours for 4000 gold or I will take your worn armour and you can have it for 3500"  
"And the bow?" Rynn continued.  
"Rushy aren't we? Lets see... ah, what about this?" The blacksmith said unhooking a large wood bow from the wall and handing it to Rynn. She pulled its bow a few times and accepted. "Yours for 1200 gold" Brekk grinned as Rynn gave him a bag. She waited whilst he counted it and gave her the change and said her thanks and left to meet the waiting Arokh.

Chapter Twenty: Trouble at the Palace 

"Rynn!" Arokh hissed. "About time you got here. There seems to be something going on at the palace, come on we had better hurry."  
Rynn's face dropped, somehow she felt something was very wrong, what if the palace was under attack?  
Without asking any further questions she jumped onto his back and they headed towards the palace forcing their way through the main doors upon seeing the two slain knights on the bridge.

The sight that met Rynn's eyes confirmed her fear. The palace WAS under attack but however the palace guards seemed to have taken care of the situation. A guard was just wiping the blood from his sword of the slain creature lying on the ground. Zola Dane, royal seer and advisor to Lady Myschala flanked him. They both turned and looked at Rynn and Arokh when they heard their approach.  
"What is that thing?" Rynn asked cautiously walking up to the dead creature, which looked like some sort of undead walking corpse in the flickering torchlight. As her eyes looked around the palace, many more together with guards lay dead and bleeding on the ground. Clearly there was a long fight here.

"The Soulless" the guard said quietly shaking his head. "They are the pawn of the Desert Lords. They must have gotten into the palace somehow and they took us by surprise."  
Both of them hadn't noticed that Zola Dane had disappeared whilst they were having that conversation. Suddenly a female scream sounded from within the throne room. Zola Dane had found the right moment to reveal his true identity...

Both Rynn and the guard ran into the throne room to see Lady Myschala elevating in the air clutching her throat, unable to speak. She was surrounded by a magical yellow glow which followed downwards to Zola Dane's outstretched hand.  
"What do you think you are doing?" The guard shouted. Zola gave him a quick glance and sent a bolt of searing energy into his chest throwing him backwards killing him instantly. His eyes then turned to Rynn.  
"As for you" he laughed. "You are nothing but a nuisance. The time has come to put an end to your plans."  
"Put her down Dane!" Rynn shouted unsheathing the ice blade taking up a offensive stance.  
"Look at you. You are pathetic... Hey stop right there. One move and her neck breaks" Zola sniggered as Rynn came closer.

"What are you trying to prove here Zola?" Rynn asked sharply.  
Zola shook his head in amusement "The Desert Lords are the true power in this world, what you are trying to bring back are the inferiors - the dragons. If you succeed, the world will become a terrible place where the strong will bow down before the weak and there will be no place for the bold. I do not want to be part of a world where the likes of me will be ruled and dictated to by less superior beings."

Rynn became more irate. "The Desert Lords are evil. They have enslaved and killed almost the entire human race. Do you want to be part of a world full of death and destruction or a world free from war?"  
Zola's face curved into an evil smile disregarding Rynn's point of view. "But the world as it is now was caused by the dragon's failure."  
"No!" Rynn snapped. "It was Navaros, a corrupt and evil man!"  
"Ah yes, Navaros. A great warrior; he had real plans for the world until you and your wretched beast destroyed him. He got one victory though; just look what happened to your brother!" Zola shouted making the last part of his sentence more meaningful.

Rynn swelled up with anger remembering Delon's tragic death. "That's enough Zola. Let Myschala go now or you will die here."  
"As you wish" Zola Dane said letting Myschala slump to the floor coughing violently.  
Zola began to make for the door turning around briefly to shout back at Rynn. "You have not seen the last of me. Follow at your peril" and with those last words, he disappeared into thin air.

General Dherimon came rushing into the palace straightaway coming to Myschala's aid, helping her to stand. She was still breathless but managed to whisper to Rynn that she was alright and unharmed.  
"Arokh, come here!" Dherimon shouted to the beast who was waiting outside, he had seen what had just happened through the wide open doors. The majestic beast walked into the throne room slamming the door shut with his tail and a glared at them with a look of rage in his eyes.  
"So, a traitor was he?" Arokh questioned referring to Zola Dane. His voice was loud and filled with anger as he spoke.  
Dherimon nodded. "I knew there was something wrong about him. He was a spy reporting all of our activities to the Desert Lords. Undoubtedly he will have fled to the Desert of Tears to amass an army to prevent you from opening the two remaining gates. He may have even fled to Stratos."

"Stratos?" Rynn said puzzled then fell silent when she saw the look in Arokh's eyes; he had already explained about the place but nevertheless Dherimon gave a quick recap.  
"Stratos is a set of floating islands brought up from the desert below. It is there where the Desert Lords rule from and if Zola has fled there, I would recommend staying away. Your goal is to open the gates, nothing else. Then we can take care of that wretch."  
"A desert, here in these lands?" Rynn questioned.  
"The Desert Lords have the ability to mould the land and environment to suit them. You will see the Valley of the Fallen is farmland but gradually turns to desert as you reach the borders of their climate spell" Dherimon explained.

Rynn nodded. It was a good explanation after all. "Perhaps we should go now to the desert" she suggested.  
"No. You will need sleep also I need both of you need to make sure there are no more soulless around here before you go. You could do with you finding where they got in as well; the palace is rife with hidden passages and tunnels." Dherimon disagreed.  
"But what about the army?" Rynn pointed out.  
"Dherimon is right Rynn" Arokh said softly. "If we need to fight this army, we need to be prepared and fatigue is not our friend. We will sleep here tonight and move at first light."  
Reluctantly, Rynn agreed. "Ill start looking for hidden tunnels whilst you do a quick scout from the air" she suggested. Arokh grunted in agreement and walked out of the huge double doors whilst Rynn began her trek through lots of cobweb infested tunnels deep within the forgotten parts of the palace.

Later that evening, Rynn and Arokh were again back in the palace, invited to the evening feast. As Rynn sat at the huge wooden table, she recalled the last few hours' events. She had found where the Soulless were entering the palace which was through an old teleporter in an abandoned part of the palace dungeons. Clearly, the traitor, Zola Dane had something to do with it so Lady Myschala had the guards destroy the teleporter to prevent their return.

Arokh sat opposite at the table on his hind legs arching his back and neck as low as possible so he looked as less out of place as possible and Lady Myschala sat at the head with her royal guards filling the remaining seats. It appeared to Rynn that she did not have any family, she would have liked to ask but felt that it would be inappropriate to mention such matters.

They ate most of the meal in silence, Arokh exchanging glances every so often at Rynn and grimacing. The guards spoke amongst themselves occasionally but generally ignored Rynn; the only person who seemed to notice the atmosphere was general Dherimon.

"You not speaking Rynn, everything okay?" he whispered to her.

"Mmm…hmm" she mumbled swallowing her food. Arokh glared across, his red eyes glittering in the light. "It's me isn't it?" He growled, his voice startling the guards.

General Dherimon sent him a questioning glance but the dragon stood up angrily and stormed out of the room.

"What's the matter with him?" Myschala asked looking up concerned.

"I don't know, Ill go and get him" Rynn suggested leaving to follow her bonded.

She caught up with Arokh in another dining hall. "What's up Arokh, are you angry with me?" she said. Arokh whipped round and gave a weak smile upon hearing her voice. "No Rynn. Not at you, I just felt out of place in there. Dragons do not normally eat with humans and it seemed like nobody dared to speak to me."

Rynn placed her hand on his side. "It's probably because they are not used to you. Come back and Ill explain to them. Try and make conversation."

"About what?" the dragon asked.

"Oh, I don't know, anything. Just join in the conversation, I'm sure nobody will mind." Rynn assured wanting him to follow her back.

"No, its OK. Leave me here" the dragon disagreed. "Anyway, you didn't make conversation much yourself."

"I knew something was wrong, that's why. Come on silly, lets both go back," she asked again.

The dragon let out a snort and grinned. "OK, Ill apologise." He said and followed Rynn back to the table.

"I'm sorry for my behaviour" he barked as he seated himself on the floor at the table.

"Don't worry about it Arokh" Lady Myschala answered.

"Talk to him a bit" Rynn whispered to the guard sat next to her who gave her a deeply worried look. "Go on, he won't bite." Reluctantly, the guard agreed and asked Arokh about the days of the Order. He wished he hadn't bothered, as Arokh became the centre of attention for the rest of the evening, the group around the table entertained by his fascinating stories.

Some many hours later, Rynn awoke suddenly upon hearing the sound of large wooden doors crashing shut somewhere within the palace echoing within the huge sparsely furnished rooms. She rolled over and tried to get back to sleep but sat bolt upright when she realised it was morning. Yawning, she remembered last night's events; Arokh and her had been treat like kings that evening and belching quietly she could still taste the food she had eaten the night before repeating on her. Suddenly a knock came at the door.  
"Who is it?" She shouted.  
"A guardsman. I was sent to awake you; you have a very impatient dragon waiting" came the voice from outside. Rynn quickly got dressed and left her room to see a burly guard standing there like a steel statue.  
"This way Miss" he beckoned showing her the way downstairs and eventually into the throne room. There, Lady Myschala, Arokh and General Dherimon awaited her.

"There you are Rynn. You slept well?" Arokh asked.  
"And you?" Rynn answered but Arokh was cut short when he tried to reply. "Enough of pleasantries. You have work to do" Lady Myschala snapped impatiently. She turned to Arokh. "Arokh, would you be so kind to tell your bonded about the current events?"  
Arokh nodded. "Certainly" he answered turning his great head to his bonded, his eyes showing deep concern. "The mountain path entrance to the Valley of the Fallen is under attack. We must help our allies defend the gate that seals up the tunnel to the valley; its all that stands between us and Jassad's forces" he spoke gravely flicking his eyes quickly towards to Lady Myschala who acknowledged him with a slight nod.  
Rynn shrugged and went to seat herself on a nearby chair. "Well, we had better get going after breakfast" thinking more of her stomach rather than the urgency of keeping the only line of defence safe.

Arokh gave a short laugh. "No time for breakfast Rynn. We must go now. Go to the alchemist and buy what you need; we will face more difficult enemies than what we encountered in the Northlands."  
"More difficult? Well, I'm glad you're with me. Just remind me not to stray too far from you." Rynn grinned uneasily.  
Arokh gave a slight smirk and beckoned for her to mount him. "Come on, the entrance to the valley is a long way. We must go now."

Flying towards the gate to the valley and eventually the desert, Rynn realised an important element. If there were to be more dangers ahead, then her current weapons would no longer be sufficient. "This armour is durable Arokh, but I think we need to search for some better weapons," she said tapping his neck to get his attention.  
Arokh replied with a hint of anger in his voice "we don't have time now Rynn to search for more weapons, the gate is just ahead and I can see that the soldiers are against some heavy odds."

As they got closer, Rynn could make out a giant, some wartocks and about 4 catapults. Arokh quickly took out the catapults and landed next to the giant, engulfing it in flames. Rynn leaped to the ground and ran to the soldiers' aid, but suddenly felt a pain surround her throat. "Arokh"! Rynn yelped, and turning saw Arokh and the giant in a furious blur of flame, fur, scales, claws and teeth. Cries from both the giant and the dragon could have been heard for miles. Rynn began to feel light headed from the difficulty breathing and knew that Arokh had little time. Fumbling to get a health potion out, and nearly choking and passing out from the pain, she drank the potion, giving Arokh enough strength to turn his teeth to the giant's arm. Sinking his teeth into fur and flesh, he tore the arm completely off, and with a final blast of lighting, fried the giant to ashes.  
Luckily, with Arokh destroying the giant and catapults, the soldiers had killed the rest of the wartocks and were helping the wounded as Rynn ran to her bonded and only family, who was sprawled on the ground and breathing heavily. Rynn could see deep claw marks on Arokh's neck, and drank a potion to heal them. "Thanks Rynn" Arokh whispered, his throat still a little sore. A soldier put his hand on Rynn's shoulder, surprising her slightly, "will he be alright, can I do anything?"

"He just needs to catch his breath" Rynn said, with tears welling up in her eyes. Rynn placed her head on Arokh's forehead, softly rubbing his neck. Time seemed to creep slowing by as Arokh slowing regained normal breathing and full consciousness. "It doesn't make sense, monsters appearing like that. Why would Zola Dane do this?" said the soldier.  
"Because he works for the Dark Union" Rynn yelled, wanting nothing else at that moment but just to be in silence with Arokh. He was breathing fine again, but many feelings and thoughts clouded his mind. Arokh had never been attacked in this matter and he regretted landing so close to the damn thing. Holding back the fear and anger and speaking as assertive as possible "we have to get going Rynn. By now Zola Dane is probably already halfway to Stratos."

"Are you sure you are alright?" Rynn questioned softly. With a hint of fear in his eyes, the dragon gave his reply. "That giant had more strength then I expected, it may be a good idea to get some better weapons before going into the desert. Perhaps the sorceress Jade may be some help."

Rynn verified with irritation "her tower is back in Surdana right?" Arokh nodded slowly.

"You can get some breakfast and some more supplies. "I know the castle has some food for you Arokh, it would be better then going out and getting your own" Rynn beckoned.

"I am well capable of getting my own food Rynn. Now lets get going" the dragon replied on a slightly angered tone.

The flight back to Surdana was stressful. Rynn could feel that Arokh was filled with anger and distress, his wings and body even showed signs of tension. She only wished she had a word to say that would calm him, comfort him. Remembering Arokh's history, Rynn realised how devastating it must be to almost be taken out by a giant.

Placing her hand on the back of Arokh's neck, she tried to reassure him. "I am not disappointed in you Arokh."

Arokh immediately stopped in mid air with such a sudden abrupt halt that Rynn almost knocked her head against his neck. Hovering in mid air, he turned his head to look at his bonded. Rynn had not known that dragons could cry, but in that moment staring eye to eye with Arokh, Rynn could see the faint swelling of tears, and understood just how deep the pride of her bonded was. Rynn wanted so much to just reach out and hug him, but she did not want to possibly upset him further. Arokh held back the tears, and looking away began flying again towards Surdana. In his mind he knew that Rynn understood his pain, and slowly the anger and disappointment faded from Arokh leaving only love and hope on his mind.

When they finally reached Jade's tower Arokh could not help secretly feeling that they had wasted 3 hours. It had taken almost an hour and a half to reach the path to the valley of the fallen only to turn back. They managed to fight off the attackers and realised that Rynn needed better weapons _if only they were not so hasty to leave Surdana in the first place! The soldiers could have easily managed without their help._

Arokh landed outside the tower landing neatly on the small grassed area in front of the entrance with practised ease letting Rynn slide from his neck. "You go on in. Perhaps Jade could teach you a spell or two. All you know is to cast bolts of lightning which are relatively weak."

Rynn coughed and nodded. "Well, it may prove to be useful but I'd still rather use a sword if you know what I mean."  
Arokh looked at her with a surprised expression than managed a slight smile. "Well, that I don't doubt but if you have the capability to be a mage or wizard then you should certainly make use of it. It's a gift, not all humans are so lucky."  
Rynn looked doubtful, unsure of what Arokh was getting at. She wasn't that interested in learning and with her current experience the spells she could produce would be useless against the creatures she had witnessed attacking the palace the night before.  
"Well, Ill go in and talk to her. Why don't you go over to the palace for something to eat? Ill meet you back here in half an hour" Rynn suggested.  
"That I do like the sound of" Arokh grinned. "See you later" he added flying upwards and towards the palace whilst Rynn ventured into Jade's tower.

"Arokh!" Lady Myschala said in alarm. "What are you doing back here? I thought you were on your way to the Valley of the Fallen. Don't you think you should be on your way?"  
"Don't you think you should shut up?" Arokh snapped in anger and frustration. He sighed when he saw the look on her face which followed. She wasn't one to argue with the great red beast but she wasn't going to be offended in her own home in front of her guards.  
"I'm sorry." He quickly apologised. "I'm just.. Well, you know what I have been through. I came back because we found that we need better weapons; you were correct about the difficulties we will face" he added.  
Lady Myschala's face remained blank and eventually she nodded and bowed. "Take whatever you need, Arokh."  
Arokh laughed, his voice echoing in the palace "All I want is some breakfast and Ill take some for Rynn too. She is over in Jade's tower learning some much needed magic."  
A faint smile appeared on Myschala's lips "This way" she beckoned showing him the way to the dining hall even though he already knew where it was.

Meanwhile, Rynn had just spent 3000 of her well-earned gold learning the combustion spell enabling her to make enemies spontaneously catch fire. It was difficult practising but she felt that she had got it, she would get the chance to use it later. There was little space in the small room at the top of the tower and it was full of bookcases containing ancient texts and scrolls and setting them on fire would not be in either of their best interests...  
As she was about to leave, Jade called her back suddenly remembering something. "Rynn, I want to tell you something. I need you and Arokh to slay a necromancer for me."  
Rynn turned round concerned. She thought that surely there wouldn't be anyone of such power nearby. "A necromancer?"

Elsewhere in the darkest part of the dessert of tears, Zola Dane had entered the throne room of the crypt keeper Gothraul. While pushing aside his guards, the traitor informed the Dark Lord of Rynn and Arokh's progress. "Gothraul, prince of ghouls, Arokh with his bonded are on their way, I want you to stop them."  
Gothraul stood up from his throne in anger. He had already struck a deal with the Desert Lords to help them destroy his sworn enemy, Arokh and he wasn't interested in a human telling him what to do. Gothraul had always despised the human race ever since the end of his mortal life and he didn't particularly favour the Desert Lords either.

"We will destroy them when we see fit Wizard" he roared. "Get out before you join us."

Zola Dane bowed and left the throne room as ordered.

Returning from the palace with a full stomach and a sack of food tied to one of his front legs, Arokh returned to Jade's tower to find Rynn engulfing a bush into flames.

"Just what did that bush ever do to you Rynn" he remarked with some surprise in his voice as well as a smile on his face, happy that Rynn had learned a new spell.

Rynn turned to see Arokh land. "Practice makes perfect Arokh, besides I knew it would be a while to fill that belly of yours.

"Are you calling me fat?" Arokh said giving her a quick sideways glance. "Because I brought you some too and it was delicious" he continued while slithering his tongue across his teeth.

"Jade has asked us to do a favour" Rynn jumped in. "A gravestone with immense powers has been taken by a necromancer."  
"And what is in it for us?" the dragon replied scratching at an itch on his neck. He knew for well that this meant more wasted time.

"A blade that can absorb life, the lastat Blade." Rynn smiled as she mounted her bonded lifting a scale where he had been scratching and giving the skin a good scratch for him.

"Alright" Arokh groaned, as Rynn bent back the scale a little further to clean out the dirt, realising she too was in need of a good bath.

"The tower is east of town, but lets go down to the lake first Arokh, we could both use a good bath, and I can eat then too" Rynn suggested. She knew the water would be cold but she wasn't really bothered, it would only be a quick rinse. She would have got a bath that morning in the palace but she didn't have the time with oversleeping and the urgency of the assault on the gate.

Arokh's jaws curved into a satisfying and joyous expression and bolted down to the lake at the base of the cliff. There was a waterfall that ran from the river above, which flowed through the city that Arokh just could not stay away from. As Rynn ate her food she laughed with joy watching her bonded walk in and out of the falls, trying to get every part of his body washed. As Rynn was just finishing her meal, she noticed that he could not wash his stomach very well. "How are you going to get your belly washed Arokh?" she asked as she imagined her bonded sprawled on his back with the falls going the length of his body.

"Well if you are done filling your face, maybe you could help Rynn" Arokh suggested beckoning her to enter the water with him.

With excitement in her voice, she quickly replied. "Love to."

Arokh walked out into the lake until the water was up to his knees, and then happily rolled over. Rynn undressed tying a nearby discarded cloth around her waist for privacy and swam out to the dragon, giving herself a quick wash in the process. "_Surely Arokh won't be embarrassed if I don't cover myself up completely_?" she thought to herself as she realised the cloth wasn't big enough to cover her front altogether.

Rynn knew that it was her turn to give her dragon a bath, remembering that a stranger from the palace gave him one while she was in the Shadowmire swamp. Climbing onto his belly and with a sponge she found by the riverbank, Rynn began to clean and polish Arokh's neck, belly and tail.

Arokh had found paradise; nature had created the perfect dragon bath, with a rock placed perfectly so his head was out of the water, allowing him to recline in harmony. With his neck finished, Rynn cleaned his belly and fell into a peaceful rhythm of cleaning, listening to Arokh's soft breathing. Lady Myschala and General Dherimon were watching from a palace window.

"Its nice to see a moment of peace for those two in all this evil" said Myschala as she turned away from the window. A few minutes later Rynn was cleaning Arokh's lower torso, and got a very big surprise. "Owe ya, Arokh is definitely in dream land." Dherimon giggled as lady Myschala left the room.

"Arokh!" Rynn exclaimed while slapping the rear leg that was the closest to her. Without even a sign of embarrassment, Arokh's modesty kicked back in.

As Rynn was drying herself and getting dressed, Arokh finally felt comfortable with the feelings of his bonded. Even though the biology would never work and the physical size of the dragon's reproductive organ would be a problem, it did not matter. Rynn may be a human, but she had a heart and soul of a dragon. Carefully, Arokh rolled over and waited for her to mount him and then flew off heading for the Necromancer's tower where Jade had indicated.

It only took a few minutes to get to the outskirts of the tower. Rynn came to her senses suddenly to the drop in temperature for the necromancer tower was above a glacier lake, suspended above by a stake going deep into the glacier. Rynn saw the tower and was puzzled by the size, but Arokh knew better not to judge something by its cover.

"Rynn, we have a problem." Arokh said with concern.

" What is it?" she asked as she sat more upright on his back craning her neck to see further. She could see some sort of winged skeletal being in front of them looking like the undead dragons they encountered near the rift.

"Bone Dragons Rynn. They are the dragon undead; they came from behind the tower taking me by surprise…Arrrrrrrrrr" Arokh groaned as a bolt nailed him in the hindquarters.

"There are two more behind us Arokh" Rynn said quickly looking back. To Arokh, she was the eyes in the back of his head and proved to be very valuable to him in combat.

"I just had those scales polished." Arokh said with rage, as he tried to out manoeuvre them. But the bone dragons now were on all sides, and shooting bolts of lightning at point blank range. Arokh was to fast however and dove straight down as the dragons exploded from each others attacks which would have otherwise hit the red beast.

"_No brains, what a shame_" Arokh thought as he pulled out of the dive and landed on the top of the tower.

"Nice move Arokh" Rynn congratulated as he moved down his back to look at the wound. "Just a few burnt scales, Arokh."

"Don't worry about a potion Rynn, we are going to need them" Arokh said as he approached the entrance to the tower. Immediately upon entering, the surroundings changed from glaciers to nothing but emptiness. Surprised Rynn asked the dragon to see if he was any wiser. "What happened Arokh?"

They were still on the tower, but before them was a group of islands set up in a slowing descending corkscrew. "This tower acts as a doorway, it teleported us here." Arokh explained while looking over the islands. "There Rynn, an island of graves, perfect place for a gravestone to be."

"What is this place?" Rynn asked in bewilderment. The sky was jet black apart from the odd cloud formations that formed like menacing claws stretching across their field of view. It looked to her that they were made of fire and seemed to be pulsating as if they were alive. An eerie wind blew through the air making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

"It's an alternative dimension created by arcane magic and necromancy. Its not of our world" the dragon replied quietly looking down at the floating islands below. He glanced off the edge of the path and saw nothing but swirling mists and fire below.

"What IS that noise?" Rynn shuddered.

"The wind?" Arokh questioned.

"Yeah. It sounds like… Screaming" Rynn gulped feeling a cold shiver run up her spine.

"The sound of many tortured and restless souls. There is a great evil presence here" Arokh noted. "Come on, I want to get this over as much as you do" he continued as he took off toward the nearest island.

"And with any luck, the necromancer and his body." Rynn added.

"His Body?" Arokh asked, puzzled.

"Its why General Dherimon was not successful in killing the damn thing before, both the necromancer and his soon to be body, Kossa Vole, need to be destroyed." Rynn explained, and then suddenly saw something shiny on one of the islands. "Arokh, I see the lastat blade, land now."  
"Say please next time" the dragon mumbled as he landed next to the sword, it securely stuck in a tree. Rynn suddenly froze. The tree looked dead but it was covered in eyes embedded in the bark that swivelled around and tracked them with their every movement. "Arokh. Look, its alive!" she whispered.

"I don't think it can do us any harm" the dragon replied after looking the tree over for a few moments.

"Are you sure?" Rynn asked cautiously looking at the eerie eyes.

"Yeah" the dragon whispered back.

"Well, then, get the sword, you are closer" Rynn encouraged.

"Please Arokh" she said after a short silence. Arokh obeyed pulling the sword out of the tree with ease and handed it to Rynn, all the while rolling his eyes. Nothing seemed to have happened… Yet.

Skeleton warriors arose from the ground around them, but Arokh just took to the sky, sending a blast of lighting down onto the island. Rynn could not believe it when she waved it around in the air. "This sword is big, but it is lightweight." This clearly was a worthwhile trip she thought.

"Hopefully it does what it is supposed to do Rynn, Now go and kill that necromancer" Arokh encouraged as he landed next to a cave entrance on the largest, bottom most island.

Rynn jumped off and headed inside. "Well luck is on our side," she mumbled as he saw the necromancer's new body floating above a pit of infinite darkness. After sending about 7 arrows into the thing, the body of Kossa Vole dropped into the pit.

"How dare you!" a voice shouted angrily as a wave of magic came hurtling towards Rynn.

"You will pay for destroying my new body," said the voice. A mummy like creature similar to a Death Mage came floating over the pit, sending wave after wave of magic but Rynn dodged every blast.

"Time for you to die necromancer" she shouted in defiance whilst summoning up her new combustion spell which when unleashed, turned the mummy to dust. Rynn walked to where the mummy had come from and found the gravestone on top of a pedestal. "Time to get this back to Jade" she whispered.  
Rynn returned to her bonded and showed him the gravestone. "Excellent Rynn, now lets get out of here."

Returning back through the tower, Arokh saw a new breath orb floating above a glacier peak. Upon acquiring the new breath, Arokh knew that it had not been all a waste of time. With a wave of courage and pride in him, he explained his new powers to his bonded. "Sonic breath will take care of those Bone dragons with no sweat."

"Sonic breath?" Rynn questioned.

"Yeah. Sends blasts of sonic waves; highly concentrated ultrasonic sounds compressed into a short space. Kind of difficult to explain really but all you need to know is that it can shatter small wooden and stone structures easily. Not to mention the flesh of our enemies" the dragon replied. "Now, lets get that thing to Jade where it's safe."

Rynn nodded in agreement and remained silent for the rest of the journey back to Surdana.

They soon reached Jade's tower. "Be quick Rynn, We need to get back to the Valley of the Fallen." Arokh pushed as Rynn dismounted. Rynn gave a short "Aye" as a reply and entered the tower to give Jade the gravestone.

"So the necromancer is no more, you have done us a great service Rynn," Jade said with great satisfaction. "As a reward, I will teach you the clone spell."

Rynn's eyes showed signs of surprise and confusion. "You mean I can make a clone of myself?" She said a little fearful of the spell's possible implications.

Do not be afraid Rynn," Jade commented. "The spell works by creating a diversion for you, while you are invisible."

It took forever for Rynn to learn the spell, but she finally mastered it and decided to liven up Arokh a little, knowing well that he would be getting very annoyed with the time she was taking.

Rynn went back to Arokh who immediately gave his opinion on how long she took. "What were you doing in there Rynn, Get on my back now!" He snapped impatiently.

Suddenly Rynn gave her opinion. "Come and get me, you ugly fat reptile!" she said whilst laughing.

Arokh was a little taken aback but when he was taunted more by his bonded he became more angry and immediately blew a stream of flame at his bonded but quickly stopped however when no pain was felt and saw Rynn that still in front of him without any injury.

"What sorcery is this?" Arokh growled in disgust, as Rynn disappeared. "A clone spell Arokh" Rynn said from behind a bush, "its used to distract the enemy."  
"So you didn't say that I was ugly?" Arokh said. Rynn approached her bonded, "I would never say such a thing, I only did the spell because I disliked how pushy you were when I entered."  
"Lets go Rynn" said Arokh with apologies.Chapter Twenty one: A Familiar Place

It was almost midday when Rynn and Arokh reached the large wooden gate sealing the tunnel through the mountains leading to the Valley of the Fallen. Below them, the catapults the Wartocks had used to try and breach the gate were still smouldering from Arokh's relentless attacks. The Wartocks had gone but some of the guards still remained keeping watch over the barrier between Surdana and Jassad's forces of evil.  
With a thud, the red dragon landed before the gate nodding to one of the guards to open it. As the doors swung open revealing the long rocky tunnel, Arokh felt a slight shiver go through his spine thinking of what might lie ahead. He swallowed and walked into the tunnel with Rynn upon his back the gates crashing shut behind them.

"I do not like this place" Arokh said bitterly as they left the tunnel into the lush green valley.  
"Really? It looks quite a nice place" Rynn said with enthusiasm observing the peaceful looking trees that lined the valley floor by the riverside. It was hard to imagine this was the lands of the Desert Lords.  
Arokh snorted in disdain. "Might be pretty now but this was once the scene of a devastating battle in which many of friends and comrades were lost. The sight of the place brings back painful memories."  
Rynn placed her hand on the dragon's neck to show her concern. She didn't know the scale of the battle that took place there over 600 years ago but the memory was still fresh in the dragon's mind.  
He turned his head round to look at her and gave a weak smile. "The gate hopefully will not be far."

The valley seemed very quiet. Only a few Wartock camps were dotted about on the ground, which they both ignored as they were short of time. A few bat dragons attacked but they were no stronger than the ones that populated the wilderness around Surdana and were no threat to the mighty dragon.  
"Arokh, is it me or is it getting warmer? I have noticed the air becoming drier and warmer as we fly further down the valley" Rynn pointed out undoing her furs, which she was still wearing since they left the Northlands.  
Arokh nodded. "You are correct Rynn. We are on the borders of the Desert Lords climate spell. You may have been told that they can mould the environment and weather to suit their needs within a certain area. Look ahead; can't you see the grass giving way to sand?"  
Rynn looked into the hazy distance. A few farmhouses were below just where there was a significant change from lush greenery to sand.  
"The desert must be near then," she said quietly knowing that it would almost certainly be guarded by Jassad's finest.

Arokh did not answer and descended landing on a small grassy area amongst the farmhouses. Rynn jumped off and shielded her eyes from the sun looking towards the Desert, thinking of what was in store for them.  
"No, please don't hurt us!" A voice suddenly startled her. Turning around she noticed a small group of farmers stood nearby.  
"Don't worry, we won't hurt you. We are on your side" Rynn said in a friendly voice walking up to one of the men.  
"I'm Rynn" she introduced herself.  
"Andrey" the man answered holding out his hand. Rynn took it and shook hands showing that she was indeed friendly.  
"You won't feed us to your dragon?" A young woman asked with concern staring at the dragon fearfully.  
"Oh no" Rynn laughed. "He is quite harmless."  
Arokh gave her a quick look upon hearing that comment and frowned. "Harmless eh?" He shook his head and came over to join them.

The young woman seemingly was assured by Rynn's comment and looked the dragon over with curiosity rather like a young kitten does to a small mouse. She walked around him but yet kept her distance mesmerised by the magnificent beast, she had heard the legends of the Elder Breed but never guessed they looked as handsome as Arokh.  
"So this is a dragon of the Elder Breed? Is it male or female?" She asked.  
"Male" Arokh grunted in objection.  
The woman backed away upon hearing the dragon speak, it was not something she had expected. "So is he yours then? He's quite nice looking isn't he?" she asked but Rynn did not reply, just gave a quick nod and turned back to her father.  
"Well I aim to please" Arokh said with a grin.  
"You are very lucky" the woman said rejoining her father.

Getting straight to the point Rynn asked for any hints to their quest. "Do you know where the two gateways are?" Rynn asked hoping that he would point them in the right direction straightaway.  
Andrey thought for a moment and gave his reply. "There is one just before the desert about a mile down the valley. It's guarded well by bone dragons though. The other has been taken away" he answered flatly.  
Rynn frowned. "Taken? By whom?"  
Andrey shook his head. "The Desert Lords took it up to their floating city in the sky called Stratos but you would mad to go there."  
Rynn suddenly became more interested. "Stratos? So you know. Okay, how do we get up there, can we just fly up there?"  
Andrey again shook his head. "I doubt it, the only way up is by a lift that goes from beyond the structure in the desert - you will see it plain enough. The Desert Lords have some sort of energy barrier around the city otherwise I guess you could just fly up there. Furthermore, the entrance to that place is barred by a couple of laser like beams which destroy anything they touch."

Rynn paused for a moment, she knew it wouldn't be easy. "What is this place and is there any way to disable the beams?" She asked feeling that it may well mean another search for a lost artefact or key to progress. She was sick of that kind of thing now and just wanted to get the gates opened as quickly as possible.  
"The structure in the desert is an ancient temple or something that once belonged to the Dark Union. As for the lasers, I really don't know. I can't help you there" Andrey said bitterly, he was a bit disappointed in himself for not being of much help.

"There is something though" he said after a short moment. "My boy, Perry, used to play around that area and its possible the Wartocks caught him sniffing round; I haven't seen him for 2 days. He has a key that gets into the lower catacombs below the temple or whatever that place is. If you could..."  
"Find Perry for you?" Rynn continued cutting Andrey short. It was the least they could do.  
Andrey sighed and smiled. "Please, if you could, Ill reward you well. There is a Wartock base further down the river at the other side. You should try there first."

"Do you mind, Arokh?" Rynn asked.  
The dragon turned his head away and gritted his teeth angered by further delays. "Okay, but first we open the gate near the Desert" he answered looking back at Rynn. "Perry's key may come in handy to enter that place if we are to get to Stratos. I had hoped we did not have to go to the wretched place but it seems luck is not on our side."  
Suddenly the men scattered. "Look out!" Andrey cried and ran for cover.  
Fearfully Rynn turned her eyes to the sky. Bone dragons!

Rynn barely had time to mount Arokh before a surge of electrical energy hit the ground beside them burning the grass into a blackened hole. The farmer's family had already fled to the safety of the farmhouse where they watched from the windows. Arokh's eyes tracked his target and tried out his sonic breath for the first time. He was surprised at the effect; the highly concentrated blast of sonic energy had a devastating result on the bone dragon's fragile skeleton visibly shattering parts of it.  
By now Arokh was airborne ready to finish off his foe when his leg was hit.

"Arokh! Behind, there are two of them!" Rynn cried in alarm. Arokh snarled in pain and dodged another bolt of energy waiting for his own breath weapon to recharge so he could finish off his first attacker. The sound was like a loud thunderclap as he sent a retaliatory strike at his foe but he missed!  
"Damn" the dragon muttered under his breath backing off when he saw the undead creature turn round for an attack. He closed his eyes for a second or two to block out the brilliant flash of light but it never came; an arrow sailed right into the bone dragon's rotting carcass and exploded.

Arokh looked down and saw that one of the farmers had fired an explosive tipped arrow with precision accuracy. But, there was no time to thank him. The second bone dragon attacked again and Arokh managed to avoid the projectile sending the full blast of his sonic breath into its face shattering it into pieces, the delicate bones falling to the ground like white stones. The red dragon hovered for a moment to get his breath back.  
"We should get to the gate now" he suggested looking furtively around the skies. "They know we are here now, we should move quickly and waste no time."

The gate like Andrey had said was about a mile downstream neatly nestled between two large sandy mounds. They had met about five bone dragons guarding it but Arokh chose to deal with them one at a time attacking from a distance and drawing them into the valley where there was plenty of room to manoeuvre. Two successful hits from their lightning attack would kill him outright and the fights with them had already used up a sizeable supply of Rynn's health potions.

"Its hot here" Rynn complained wiping the sweat from her brow and undoing her coat to let some air circulate.  
"I'm not surprised with what you are wearing; its so hot here even I'm starting to perspire; the soles of my feet are soaking wet" Arokh pointed out.  
"Ugh, I didn't really want to know that" Rynn said. "I hope your armpits don't smell as bad as your feet, I'm quite near them" she laughed.  
Arokh grunted ignoring her remark. He thought she knew that dragons didn't sweat except for the soles of their feet, he had told her that back in Alwarren looking for Turi's soul crystal.

"I don't know why you didn't change when you had the opportunity in Surdana, surely you knew the desert would be hot?" he continued; she was still wearing the furs she was given by Captain Fandril the day before. "After we open the gate, we will go back to Surdana and you can buy some more suitable clothes. I don't want you passing out on me with heat exhaustion" he said as he proceeded to open the gate. "Anyway my feet don't smell," he added in a quieter voice, his jaws drawn into a slight smile.  
"They bloody do!" Rynn remarked jokingly. She sat back and relaxed; she knew this wouldn't take long.

Purple energy surrounded the dragon as he summoned the spell hovering in front of the circular gate. Rynn noticed that one of the dragon heads on either side of its top surface had broken off but Arokh obviously thought it would still work. She was going to point it out but she didn't want to break the dragon's concentration. Suddenly, the bright purple energy poured from Arokh's chest and met with the gate bringing it to life after being dormant for so long. Within a few seconds the image of Surdana appeared and a low humming sound emanated from the now open portal. Now partially drained with summoning the spell, Arokh wearily turned his head to his bonded. "Three down, one to go" he remarked. Rynn swallowed and smiled back without saying anything hoping that it would be all over soon.

Without any further conversation between them, the dragon flew through the gate returning to Surdana once more for Rynn to purchase some more suitable clothes for the conditions ahead and for them to replenish their depleted supplies. If they were to reach Stratos, they needed to go prepared.

Shortly, they returned back through the gate to the Valley of the Fallen to search for the base Andrey spoke of. They would need to find the boy, Perry to make their lives much easier in getting the upper hand of their enemies.

"So, where do you think this Wartock base is?" Rynn asked as she returned to Arokh having tried a couple of locked steel gates which closed off cave entrances in the valley wall.  
Arokh looked around then frowned. "Andrey said it was supposed to be here. We should keep looking, perhaps they have more than one entrance."  
Rynn placed a finger under her new leather tunic; it was still hard and rubbed slightly especially seem as her skin was clammy with the heat.  
"Is that uncomfortable?" Arokh asked noticing her discomfort.  
Rynn shook her head "not really, just needs wearing in. Come on, lets look down there by that waterfall, there might be a hidden entrance" she said pointing downstream nearer the gate.

Arokh circled down to the bottom of the waterfall looking for any hidden caves. Even though the new leather tunic was a little uncomfortable, Rynn was glad that her scale armour was still in good shape and she did a quick scan of the quality of her weapons.  
She had the lastat blade, which she knew would definitely come in handy, as well as a long bow and the ice blade Arokh then saw what they had hoped to find. "Rynn, there is the cave entrance" he said loudly beginning to head for the open cave behind the waterfall.  
"Then lets go kill some wartocks." Rynn said, glad that they finally found an entrance that they or her was able to enter. Arokh agreed and landed on a patch of grass at the outskirts of a lake formed by the falls. Peering into the cave, Arokh saw a door at the far end and a sleeping guard, lying against a crate. "This is almost to easy" Rynn said. "You could hit that guard from here Arokh" she continued noticing that he was well in reach of the dragon's fireball breath.

Arokh turned his head around to face her. "True, but then who would open the door?" he said regarding Rynn with an inquisitive look expecting an answer but she stayed silent knowing the dragon had a point. With an almost evil smile, Arokh waded into the lake that lead into the cave. The lake was formed by the falls, but because it ran into to underwater tunnels and the river leading towards the farm, it only came up to Arokh's chest giving him the perfect chance to sneak up on the Wartock.

Quietly, Arokh went up on the bank inside the cave, and facing the Wartock only inches from its head, and shouted "hello!"

The Wartock jumped to life like a needle had poked him but Arokh wasted no time and put a foot down pinning the Wartock to the floor. "We have a slight problem that I know you are going to solve for us," he said forcefully.

"I don't have the key" the Wartock replied, fearful that the dragon would apply pressure and crush his chest. "But I can get you in the front door, just promise not to kill me." He continued offering the dragon an alternative.

"Where?" Arokh growled pressing more firmly on the Wartock's chest.

Arokh felt warm moisture on the bottom of his foot as the Wartock shuddered in fear. "Its back a ways towards the farm" he whimpered, almost crying.

Rynn could hardly keep from laughing as Arokh reared up on his hind legs and waded back through the lake still holding the Wartock between his front feet. "You are liking this way to much Arokh" she said with laughter in her voice.

"Just killing them gets boring sometimes, that's when I improvise." Arokh answered flying to the top of the falls and back towards the farm.

"There is the door, it's made of wood, so you should have no problem getting in, now please let me go" the Wartock muttered pointing out the door with an outstretched arm. Arokh laughed under his breath and decided to dispose of the Wartock. "If you say so" he said scornfully dropping the Wartock and letting him fall to his doom. He circled downwards to the door blasting the guards and door with a charged up sonic blast, shattering them into fragments. The dragon laughed to himself with self satisfaction and returned to pick up Rynn from the bank of the small lake.

"Why don't you go have some more fun while I get Perry" said Rynn as Arokh landed in front of the collapsed door.

"I'll wait Rynn, just be quick, the longer we take now, the more time Jassad has to getting reinforcements to guard the last gate" he answered glancing around the sky checking to see if any more of the bone dragons had shown up.

Taking out her ice blade, Rynn entered the base. With the cave being so hot, the ice blade cooled Rynn to a comfortable temperature, but the comfort didn't last long as she spotted a dozen Wartocks guarding a tunnel leading deeper into the cave. She thought for a moment, knowing that even her scale armour was not going to last long. "If only Arokh weren't so big" she whispered. But then she remembered that the ice blade must have some magical properties to it just like the earth blade. Holding the sword above her, the blade surrounded her with a shroud of ice. "Perfect" she mumbled and jumped right into the middle of the group of Wartocks freezing them instantly. Six however had got clear of the ice in time and surrounded Rynn just out of reach. Rynn ran towards the three Wartocks in front of her who instantly ran out of way. She knew once the ice mist was gone the sword would need a moment to recharge, so Rynn took out her long bow and fired arrow after arrow. When the ice mist cleared, only two Wartocks remained. The one closest to her swung for Rynn's head, but she dodged easily and using the ice blade froze the wartocks leg, collapsing him to the ground. Out of the corner of her eye, the other Wartock came charging with a downward swing from his axe.

"Sorry but I am not your type" Rynn said and took a step back, turning her sword under her arm, and impaling the charging Wartock. Winded from the battle, Rynn took out her lastat blade and finished off the Wartock with the frozen leg, but a sudden burst of pain shot through her as an arrow hit her side. Rynn got behind a rock and peered down the tunnel. Three more wartocks could be seen with crossbows. "_Perfect time to use the clone spell_." Rynn thought. And in summoning the spell, Rynn ran down the tunnel unseen whilst the Wartocks fired their arrows at her decoy. Within ten yards of the wartocks, they suddenly knew that something was near them but they could not see whom, as Rynn was invisible. Completely undetected, she cut them down one by one.

The lastat blade had taken care of the pain in Rynn's side, and as she looked up from the bloody mess, a voice came from a cage high above a pit. "Up here, help me," said the voice. The cave was huge, with the pit in the centre. Rynn cautiously neared the pit, heading towards what looked to be the pulley system for the cage. "No don't come any closer," said the person in the cage, as a pair of pendulums came swinging towards Rynn. Doing a forward roll, she dodged them with only inches to spare, and quickly saw the culprit who set them off. "Ohh, shoot, I guess I have to take you on myself."

It was a Wartock, but a giant in comparison to the ones she just fought. "So, how do you want to die farm girl?" the Wartock giant asked cracking its knuckles. Rynn knew that just one hit from this guy would kill her, and her weapons were not powerful enough to even pierce that monsters armour. Rynn thought about her combustion spell, but she would need time to summon it, suddenly the Wartock swung its arm, just missing Rynn by mere inches. The Wartock continued its attack, swinging violently. In out manoeuvring the creature, Rynn now found herself pinned, with the Wartock in front of her and the pit behind her. "Time to fall down farm girl" it sneered and leaped at Rynn. In a move of desperation Rynn dove under the Wartock, and the creature fell into the black hole. "Typical your brain wasn't as big as your head" said Rynn with laughter, and switched on the machine to lower the cage and extend the walkway over the pit.

"You must be Perry." Rynn said as the cage opened.

"Yes, the wartocks thought I started the old traps in the ruins, and saw me playing around there, so they captured me, but I was trying to figure out how to turn them off" said Perry, thankful of his rescue.

"Leave the traps to me Perry, we need to get you home." Rynn said as she escorted Perry out of the caves.

Arokh was waiting patiently outside. "What took so long Rynn?" he asked with impatience in his voice. Perry's face lit up with a broad smile and look of sheer amazement, never had he seen a dragon so amazing. "That dragon just talked!" he exclaimed.

Rynn and Arokh just glanced at one another, "Yeah" Rynn said with a laugh, "sometimes too much."

Arokh glanced at her again in protest. "Look who's talking Rynn" he muttered.

Perry ran up to Arokh, and circled him many times in amazement. "So can I ride him home" Perry questioned with enthusiasm.

"Don't ask me" Rynn exclaimed, exchanging looks with Arokh who was clearly getting irate with the kid circling him. "Let's get this kid home before I kill him out of sheer relief" he growled.

Perry stopped circling Arokh and Rynn walked up and mounted him. "That was a yes Perry," said Rynn.

"Climb up" she continued beckoning him to mount the dragon sitting in front of her so she could hold him.

Finally after about twenty questions from Perry, Arokh landed at the farm and Rynn helped him off of the dragon's back, who clearly was sick to death of the kid.

"Thank you so much for saving my boy" said Perry's father. "Here, I don't have much to offer you except this sword I kept from the wartocks" he offered.

Rynn could see the sword would come in handy. Perry handed a key to Rynn as she turned back to Arokh. "This key will get you into the ruins, hope you can shut off the traps" Perry said confirming what the key was for. Rynn thanked the kid and mounted Arokh who immediately took to the air.

"We should head to the Sanguinade without delay," Arokh said whilst flying towards the Desert. Rynn did not answer but the dragon knew she was in agreement. Suddenly Arokh stopped and hovered behind a sand dune lowering himself so just his head was visible to the enemies ahead. Rynn stared seeing several dragon like creatures circling the open desert plain about a quarter of a mile ahead.  
"What's the matter Arokh?" She questioned noticing the dragon felt a slight feeling of dread through the bond between them. She didn't think Arokh feared anything.  
"Griffins" Arokh grated.  
"What?" Rynn said surprised. She had heard of the mythical beasts but they were just myths, nothing more.

Arokh sank a little lower as one came close, Rynn could see that it's upper body was covered in gold and black feathers and its lower body was sandy coloured, like a large wildcat's fur. It had a large beak and talons protruded from its cat like paws.  
"Arokh, that thing is wearing a saddle!" She said in surprise and alarm.  
"Shhh!" Arokh cut her short. "They have good hearing."  
Rynn immediately fell silent and watched as the winged beast flew away breathing a sigh of relief when she realised they had not been spotted.

Taking the moment to explain the reason of the saddles, Arokh turned his head back to look at his rider. "Griffins are wild beasts but they are intelligent and can be tamed rather like a horse. They cannot talk nor have the magical capabilities of a dragon but they are loyal and make a good companion for any knight. They often served as steeds for a king's guards, long before the days of the Order." Clearing his throat, the dragon continued "I would guess they have been trained well by the Desert Lords. We should avoid them at all costs."  
"But, that is impossible isn't it" Rynn objected pointing out the obvious. Arokh gave a throaty laugh. "Think Rynn. Think."

Rynn thought for a moment, she didn't know what the dragon was getting at and she didn't want to look stupid in front of him. Eventually she said softly "In..Invisibility potions?" Stuttering in embarrassment should she have the wrong answer.  
"You catch on quick Rynn. How many do you have?" Arokh questioned lowering his tone as the griffin came closer again.  
"None." Rynn said flatly.  
There was an audible sigh of exasperation from the dragon but he bit his tongue and tried to be polite. "Well that's that idea buggered then. Have you got any invincibility potions?"  
Rynn fumbled about in her backpack. "I have two."  
There was an awful silence and Rynn broke it first. "Shall I use one then?"  
"No" Arokh snapped. "We will face more difficult enemies ahead, we should use them then."  
"Why did you mention it then...?" Rynn said, her voice fading away realising she might spark another argument with him and now was not the time.

"I'm sorry Rynn" Arokh apologised. I was thinking about my strategy and you were breaking my concentration. I have a better idea, did, by any chance Jade teach you the fear spell?"  
Rynn thought back. She would have almost certainly have remembered that one. "No, I'm afraid not."  
Arokh smiled. "I can teach you."  
"You?" Rynn said surprised.  
"Hah, don't let this old dragon fool you. I know a lot of things" he laughed. "But it does not serve any purpose to me and I can't cast it, that is why you need to know it. If you cast the spell, it will affect both of us."  
"So, the griffins will ignore us?" She said thinking ahead.  
"Exactly. Even better fly away then that way we can attack from behind or simply ignore them." Arokh answered hovering backwards turning around back towards the gate. He set down on a spare quiet piece of grass absently roasting a Grull and beckoned for Rynn to dismount.  
"Ready to learn some magic?" He grinned.

Some time later….

"For god's sake Rynn! How many more times! Arokh shouted angrily, annoyed and frustrated by Rynn's lack of understanding of the casting ritual.  
Rynn swallowed and tried again moving her hands correctly but still nothing happened. She stared at the dragon who tossed his head away in frustration as she failed to cast the spell correctly for what seemed like the hundredth time. She could see a flash of anger in his eye; Rynn knew Arokh was very short tempered and had little patience. She didn't want to fall victim to his foul temper again; he could be very, very nasty despite his feelings towards her. Rynn thought back to when she was bathing Arokh under the waterfall that very morning giving a quick glance between the dragon's rear legs remembering the incident. An overwhelming feeling of lust suddenly came over her as her eyes followed his magnificent body up to his head. She wondered if he was thinking of her when she was washing between his legs or somebody / something else but after giving it a second thought, concluded that it probably wasn't her. Whatever it was, she now knew what he enjoyed and she could possibly do something _special_ for him when this was all over. That is of course if he was in agreement. Shaking off the thought, she concentrated on getting the fear spell right; Arokh was counting on her now. Personal favours would come later, much later.

"_Maybe I'm not saying it correctly?_ She asked herself in her mind as a boost of confidence flowed through her. She tried again and this time it worked! She was covered in a yellow glow for a few seconds and then it was gone.  
"Is that it? It didn't last long" She muttered with disappointment.  
Arokh swivelled his head round, the look in his eye somewhat more pleasing. "Yes. But it does last longer than you think; the yellow glow only lasts for a few seconds but the effect lasts for a minute or so. When you get more experience, you can make it last longer."

Rynn nodded. "Shall we try it out then?"  
"Only when you feel confident enough." Arokh replied.  
"But we are in a hurry" Rynn pointed out. "We must reach the sangu.. Whatever it's called and stop Jassad!"  
"Maybe. But we can't afford to be killed. The whole of Humanity and dragonkind is counting on us and if we fail... Well, the consequences are unthinkable." Arokh remarked.  
"Well, it's nice to be wanted. Come on lets go" Rynn said walking up to the dragon to mount but he pushed her gently away with a wing.  
"Are you sure?" He said sternly looking at her in the eyes. Rynn stared back and eventually said, "I'm sure."Chapter Twenty Two: Double Dragon

Returning to their observation point earlier, Arokh hovered just out of view like before. "Ready" he warned as two of the griffins lurked nearby at the other side of the sand dunes.  
Rynn cast the spell and Arokh immediately flew straight at the griffins, two of them shrieking in fear and fleeing for their lives.  
The dragon quickly scanned the landscape with his sparkling red eyes picking out a set of stones nestled between two small mounds of sand. He remembered something from long ago when he was last there during the battle against Navaros's forces and when the desert was lush green countryside. "Down there Rynn. I'm going to land and you are going to get that sword."  
"What sword?" Rynn shouted looking where the dragon was pointing. All she could see was some sort of shrine, collapsed with age.  
Arokh didn't reply and hastily landed on the parched hard baked soil and sand. Rynn leapt off, as she knew she had to do something for the dragon. "There isn't much time. Go!" He snarled pushing her roughly towards the shrine. "Thirty seconds!"

Rynn ran towards the shrine but could see no sword. "Where?" she shouted back at the dragon who ignored her; he was too busy taking out the griffins from the ground that had strayed too close.  
A grating sound suddenly startled Rynn and turning round she saw that a sword had risen from the centre stone. Without hesitating, she grabbed it and began to run back towards where Arokh was waiting but the ground opened up and four soulless emerged. She instantly recognised the hideous things from that encounter in the palace the day before. Rynn immediately lunged at one with the fire blade instantly setting its arm alight but one of the others hit her in the back. Her armour absorbed most of the blow but she felt blood running freely down her back and a searing pain went through her with every step she took.  
"Rynn! Run!" Arokh yelled walking closer to her position dipping to let her on.

Rynn almost dropped the sword, as her hands were slippery with blood and sweat running as fast as she could leaping onto the dragon's back. He was immediately airborne making a quick manoeuvre to aim a charged sonic blast at the Soulless killing them instantly.  
Suddenly a blast of yellow energy shot past them.  
"Out of time. Rynn you must cast the spell again now or we are dead" Arokh snarled under his breath evading another projectile. Rynn trembled with fear desperately trying to concentrate but she failed.  
"Come on Rynn! Now!" Arokh growled, himself starting to fear for his life.

The gateway to Surdana loomed ahead of them and a sigh of relief went through the dragon's body. "Forget it. We will escape," he shouted diving towards the gate neatly flying through it. Everything went hazy then black and they were shortly back in Surdana but they were still being pursued; Rynn didn't think the griffins would be stupid enough to follow.  
"Got it," She yelled as she cast the spell, the weary griffins giving up chase. Rynn looked back and saw that they were uneasily hovering about the gateway wondering what to do next. One was quickly taken out by the palace archers and the other fled back through the gate.

"That was close" Arokh gasped landing in the Town Square.  
"You're telling me" Rynn answered, equally breathless.  
"We should take this time to purchase new weapons and any other supplies we may need. This may be the last time we come here before Stratos." Arokh advised.  
Rynn ran her fingers through her hair to tidy it and dismounted. "Good idea Arokh. Brekk said he has something special for me if I give him the four elemental blades. Besides I need a decent bow."  
"Okay" Arokh nodded. "Meet you here in 15 minutes, no later."  
"Where are you going?" Rynn questioned seeing that he was preparing to leave.  
"I just have some business to take care of" he grinned and with that he was gone.

Walking into the store, Rynn could not think of what the dragon could be up to. Eating was always a good guess, but why the evil grin?

"Ah, the Wartocks have been telling stories about you that frighten their children." Said Brekk with a smile. Rynn took out her ice blade and fire blade and set them on the counter. "You do still have the earth and lightning blade correct?" She asked.  
"Certainly miss" Brekk answered as he took the two swords on the counter and added them to the other two in the back and presented Rynn with the blade he promised.

"This is the best sword I carry, the Mournbringer," he said unveiling a very familiar looking sword.

Rynn was stunned and almost looked white when she took the sword and held it to her face, eyeing the detail. She thought back, and was sure that the sword had been thrown into the lava with the rift blade after the defeat of Navaros.

Brekk noticing Rynn's concern wondered what was wrong with the weapon. "Something wrong with the sword?" He asked. Rynn gave a few quick swings and with relief no sounds of moaning came from the sword. "No, its perfect" she mumbled. It was obvious it was not the same sword, the one she found was called the Mournblade and Brekk had called the one she was holding the Mournbringer.

"Good," Brekk said. "Now I have a few more items that I feel you could use" he continued as he rummaged through his small cache of weapons under the counter.

Rynn knew she needed better armour as well as a much better bow, but Brekk had both answers with the best quality in the field. Rynn had to sell the long bow and lastat blade, but considering what Brekk had to offer and since the Mournbringer regained life as well, it was well worth it. She now had the Armour and bow of the Order which was the same equipment Surdana's Knights carried, the tempest blade from Perry's Father and the powerful Mournbringer.

Rynn took the extra time to stock up on health potions and met Arokh shortly afterwards by the Alchemists. She didn't even bother to ask him where he had been as she knew it would only be a short sarcastic reply; the dragon did not like to be questioned even by her. With a quick leap into the air, the dragon was airborne heading back towards the gate once more.

"Don't you get the feeling this is too easy?" Rynn asked the graceful dragon as they entered the Desert of Tears for what was probably the last time.  
There was a pause whilst she waited for him to answer as he dove lower to the ground to hide himself better amongst the sand dunes.  
"Not for me" he growled.  
"Oh" Rynn replied a little taken aback by his short reply; she had hoped for a little more conversation and at least get his opinion. He kept warning of dangers ahead but they always seemed to get by with no problem.

They flew in silence for a while and eventually Arokh put her out of her misery. "Only joking Rynn. It does seem too easy, yes but I think Jassad has underestimated us or he has all of his defences in Stratos. Anyway, despite me being the saviour of Drakan and well, er, my exceptional combat abilities, I would not have got this far if it wasn't for you."  
Rynn laughed and tapped him lightly on the side of the neck. "Show off" she said jokingly. "If I hadn't have awakened you, this would never have happened."  
"Not only that" Arokh noted. "But you can get into places I can't and I surely would have been killed if you had not learnt the fear spell for one example."  
"We make a good team together don't we?" she smiled.

Arokh quickly changed the subject as they neared the end of the valley were the desert floor rose sharply to give way to towering mountains. The imposing structure of the Sanguinade loomed ahead protruding from the base of the mountain. Rynn could see that the main entrance was blocked by a couple of purple beams across the doorway and another identical set could be seen just behind.  
"Those must be the beams Perry's father was talking about" she whispered as if in expectation of an attack.  
Arokh had slowed his flight to a crawl, eyes darting all over the place looking for enemies. He barley answered her in the form of a short grunt as he landed in front of the huge temple like structure.

The Sanguinade was partially in ruins; most of the stone from the front had crumbled away and lay around in the sand. Two shrine like structures sat on either side of the main building, some of the stone pillars collapsed and the roof was missing on the other. The mosaic floor of the Sanguinade's interior was partially covered in sand where the wind had blown in; the wooden door had rotted away long ago.  
Arokh looked up at the dragon head statues fixed at intervals around the top of the building's perimeter and following down to the huge dragon statues that flanked the entrance. They sat upon stone stands and were carved in to menacing poses as if to frighten away any unwary visitors.

Rynn was just about to mention that the area looked safe when a bright flash of light shone in front of them and then disappearing as quickly as it came. Arokh blinked and stared at the figure stood before them.  
"Dane!" He snarled. "I thought I'd catch up with you soon. You are a dead man if you continue to help the Desert Lords..."  
"Shut up you ignorant beast!" Zola Dane interrupted him. Arokh didn't answer back but just glared at him with anger. As much as he hated the man, he would not kill a human being unless absolutely necessary.

"I have no intentions of giving up, not now. As for you, your luck has been uncanny; a miracle even that you got this far." Zola drawled in his high pitched irritating voice. Arokh's jaws curved into a scornful gaze, continuing to let the wizard speak, purely for the entertainment factor alone.  
"You are pathetic" Arokh snarled barring his teeth to show his anger.  
Zola Dane just laughed in his face and continued. "Pathetic eh? Well, lets just say your good luck has come to an end. You see, I have arranged a little meeting for you, a reunion so to speak."  
Arokh looked puzzled for a moment and for some reason, his mind flashed back to Heron. "_No, it can't be_" he thought and turned his eyes back upon the traitor wizard.  
Zola Dane had by now turned his back and uttered the words "Shaza! Tora! Awake!" and simply disappeared into thin air.

There was a thunderous cracking noise as fragments of rock showered them. Looking up, Arokh saw that the two dragon 'statues' had come alive!  
"So they are not statues then." He muttered under his breath. Something was familiar about the two dragons but he could not remember quite what. He was certain that they were not there the last time he visited the Sanguinade over six centuries ago. A few seconds later, he was promptly reminded.  
Rynn out of instinct grabbed the dragon's neck tighter in anticipation when the two identical golden dragons looked down upon them. Rynn noticed that they were the most beautiful looking creatures she had seen so far in her life; they had gold scales and a sandy coloured underbelly. Little did she know that they are the most deadly creatures she had ever seen.

"Shaza! Look. Isn't that... Arokh?" the one on the left asked. The voice was deep and throaty, even more so than Arokh's and it had a hint of a feminine tone to it.  
The other dragon looked closer as she tried to remember back to her days in the Dark Union before she and her sister became stone at the end of the war.  
"Yes... Arokh. Murderer!" She said, her voice getting louder as she said the last word.  
Arokh quickly turned his head to look at his rider who just looked back and shrugged.  
"You killed our brother and now his soul cries out for retribution!" Shaza added.

Suddenly remembering the pair, Arokh took the opportunity to put his case forward. "Your brother was a traitor to the Order of the Flame and eater of children. A crime to warrant the death penalty; you should know that!"  
"You killed him," Tora shouted, her voice showing signs of anger and some sadness.  
"I was the one to carry out the execution, yes but he committed a crime; I was doing my job." Arokh sternly pointed out.

Rynn tapped Arokh on the neck and he looked back at her again in response. "Didn't you have any friends?"  
Arokh looked away and answered in a sinister tone of voice "this is no time for jokes Rynn. These two were assassins for the Dark Union and were the Union's best."  
Shaza quickly flew up into the air shortly followed by her twin sister, Tora.  
"We should attack them now, before they are fully awake!" Arokh declared leaping into the air with tremendous force making Rynn feel like her stomach had fallen into her legs. "Now is the time to use that invulnerability potion!" Arokh shouted in a hoarse voice as one of the dragon sister's energy bolts hit him taking away a large portion of his life force. There was no wound from the blast as both the sisters attacked with life sapping magic that did no physical damage to Arokh's body but wicked away his life force like a sponge.

"Every time they hit us, a portion of our life force is taken away and added to theirs effectively healing them. Our best chance is to fight one at a time and hope we kill them before the effects of the potion runs out" Arokh shouted to his companion as he tried to avoid the homing magical streams the best he could. Rynn drank the invulnerability potion and Arokh got to work on Shaza.

Shaza backed away uneasily upon seeing Rynn drink the potion. She was unsure what would happen next and cautiously began to circle the red dragon stopping behind him whilst her sister attacked. Arokh quickly returned the attack choosing to use his ice breath attack since it homed in on nearby targets and was highly effective against the agile foes.  
"They are using some sort of protection spell," Shaza yelled to Tora.  
"It won't last long. Follow me" Tora answered and began to fly towards the open desert with her sister following closely by.

"Arokh, they are getting away!" Rynn shouted pointing out the blatantly obvious.  
"No shit" Arokh muttered to himself with sarcasm and began to give chase letting go with a couple of ice blasts hitting Shaza unexpectedly but she did not freeze much to Rynn's surprise.  
"Keep it up!" Rynn encouraged as they began to close in on their two enemies.  
Arokh growled and did a neat barrel roll to avoid a projectile from one of the sisters. There was no need to avoid it as it would not do him any harm but instinct told him to get out of the way as quickly as possible.  
"The ice breath weapon is very demanding. I can only release three blasts and I need to wait a while. Give me a chance" Arokh growled trying to get closer but they were too quick for him.

"Concentrate on one" Rynn continued, offering what she thought was a bit of support and encouragement but the dragon saw it as criticism and replied with anger. "Do I tell you how to fight? No? Well keep quiet and let me handle this. If you want to be of some help, use your bow and arrows; your homing arrows would be a sensible choice."  
"Sorry I spoke" Rynn mumbled and aimed at the dragon Arokh was targeting squinting down the arrow shaft to get a more accurate aim.

Suddenly, after a good few minutes of fighting, Tora froze solid. "Now Rynn!" Arokh shouted moving closer so she could have a better chance of hitting her target.  
Tora was slowly falling down to the ground, unable to move her wings. The hot sun was rapidly thawing her out and she would soon be mobile again. Without hesitating, Rynn fired the arrow, it landing right into Tora's head shattering the upper half and destroying the brain. The lifeless carcass thawed and crashed to the desert floor with a loud thud, plumes of the soft, dry sand briefly shot into the air around her sides and settled.

Arokh's jaws curved into a satisfying smile but shortly he found that he no longer had something to smile about; the invulnerability potion had worn off and Shaza was bearing down on him enraged at her sister's death. Arokh had killed her brother and now her only sister; she wasn't going to take this lightly.

"I think we may have a problem" Rynn whispered cautiously to her companion as she felt the effects of the potion wearing off. She knew Arokh would have felt it too but she did not know his thoughts.  
"An understatement, yes" the dragon replied adjusting his position so he could see his attacker more clearly, wondering who would make the first move. It had crossed his mind that Shaza would have fled in fear but he put that straight out of his mind when a stream of black life force stealing substance homed in on him writhing like a snake as he tried to shake it off.

Arokh let out a gasp of pain as his already weakened life force was almost taken away; he could actually see it as a purple glowing energy blob floating away from him. To his horror, Shaza quickly flew into the purple glow and absorbed it healing the injuries she had sustained before Tora's death.  
"Rynn! I feel myself weakening. Do something!" He snarled in pain and desperation. Rynn, also affected by her bonded's state barley managed to drink a potion of life as another blast hit them - one that would have killed them if she hadn't drunk the potion in time.  
"I can't keep this up" Arokh panted. "She is far beyond my capabilities but if I could just..." "Get her sister's breath attack?" Rynn interrupted finishing the sentence for him.

Arokh rolled his eyes and whispered a faint "Yes. On her death, there should be a crystal or similar containing her powers. We must get to it and fast."  
Rynn downed yet another health potion, the battle seemed hopeless; as soon as Arokh injured Shaza, she was healed by his own life force. Health potions were in short supply too, not to mention the side effects of drinking too many. Hallucinations and blacking out were the main symptoms of consuming too much of the red liquid at once and double vision would make it much harder for them.  
Summoning all of his strength, Arokh managed to avoid one of Shaza's projectiles, looking around to see it fizzle and die out. He was beginning to loose hope when Rynn cried out "Look, over there! The orb!"

Arokh immediately saw the glowing mass of dark energy and flew as fast as he could towards it; his eyes firmly fixed on it putting everything out of his mind. All he wanted in that moment was to reach that crystal energy orb.  
"Ill keep her away" Rynn suggested but Arokh didn't answer. She drew the Bow of the Order and began to fire behind at the pursuing dragon, firing arrows as quickly as possible relying on their magical homing abilities to find their target. She felt the sigh of relief that went through the dragon's body under her as he absorbed the crystal giving him the same breath weapon of Shaza. The battle now had got much easier.

The aerial battle between the two dragons raged for what seemed the longest five minutes of Rynn's life. Finally, Shaza's carcass went toppling to the ground and Arokh began a steep dive landing on the hot sandy plain below. He arched his back as an indication to Rynn that he wanted her to get off and waited for her to dismount.  
Exhausted, both physically and mentally, the dragon lay down in the sand and closed his eyes letting out a huge sigh. Noting mattered to him at that moment except for a much needed rest.  
"Well done Arokh. I'm proud of you" Rynn said softly touching his head, herself weary through the bond. She felt that he needed a bit of encouragement; what he had just gone through was probably the hardest fight he had ever taken part in bar the battle at Mount Tibor.  
Arokh raised his head and opened one eye to see Rynn squatted by his side and managed a faint smile.

"Thank you" he mumbled opening both eyes to look at her. Rynn sat down in the sand in front of him and the dragon lowered his head resting it on her legs and closing his eyes once more.  
Rynn stared at the huge head on her lap and the long body stretching out from it and thought how lucky she was. She felt tired herself but there was no time for sleep and she decided to keep the dragon talking so he would not drift off himself.  
"There is no orb where Shaza died" she pointed out for something to say. Arokh didn't move or open his eyes but mumbled a short "No" and groaned moving his legs to get more comfortable. She reached out and started to stroke his nose, the dragon's jaws curing into a satisfying smile enjoying the moment.

"If I already have the same breath weapon as the dragon I kill, there will be no orb / crystal whatever you call it" he mumbled through a partially open mouth. There was another long silence and Rynn continued, probing for more information on their attackers.  
"So, why weren't Shaza and Tora in their caves like the rest of the dragons?" She asked.

Arokh thought for a moment casting his mind back to the Dark Wars. He wasn't really interested in talking but he didn't want to appear to give the impression. Eventually he gave his answer. "They were taken from their lairs and placed at the entrance to the Sanguinade to defend it should the need arise... Which it did of course."  
"So how were they awakened?" Rynn asked.  
"I don't really know" Arokh muttered. He raised his head again and looked at her. "The Dark Union knows magic that was unknown to the Order and they don't go with the traditional rules of bonding. I would guess that their crystals were taken to the Sanguinade and somehow Zola Dane activated them. I do not know. Sorry" he apologised.  
Rynn smiled back and looked into his eyes. "It does not matter. They are dead now."  
"Aye, they are" Arokh muttered and rose to his feet. "We should get going, time is of the essence."

Some couple of hours later, Rynn was deep inside the ancient ruins of the Sanguinade whilst her fiery companion patiently waited outside till she found a way of disabling the barrier blocking the main doors.  
The interior of the Sanguinade was partially collapsed due to ageing and damage from what looked like an explosion beyond the grand hall. Rynn had taken time to view the paintings that still hung from the walls of the main hall showing the achievements of the Dark Union and large battle scenes against the Order. There was a huge painting on the far wall almost covering it showing Navaros riding his bonded mount, Kaeros, painted shortly before his betrayal. The young woman felt anger upon seeing the image as that man was the very one to take her brother, her only family away from her. Gritting her teeth, she shot a ball of flame at the ancient painting setting it alight giving her a wonderful sense of achievement.

The Sanguinade was plagued by the Soulless which tested Rynn's abilities to the full, she was glad of the Mournbringer which gave her precious health upon a successful hit but it was no easy task avoiding their devastating melee attacks. Killing the final one in the vicinity, she proceeded on to the next hall which appeared to be a reception room for guests and visitors to the ancient structure.  
"Now, what do we have here? A teleporter?" Rynn asked herself upon coming to what seemed like a dead end. A huge door to her right blocked progress and she had searched everywhere for a key; unfortunately, the key Perry gave her only gave her access to the outer door. Certain that the door was impassable, Rynn stepped on the teleporter and everything went black.

"What the?" She muttered as she stepped off the teleporter looking behind to see it deactivate preventing her return. She took a while to take in her surroundings; she appeared to be in outer space within a gassy nebula but yet there was breathable air present. She stood on a partially collapsed stone floor leading across to some sort of structure on the other side. She had a quick glance across the 'sky' confirming her suspicion that she was indeed in outer space; the planet of Drakan and its nearby cousin, the planet of Sessool could clearly be seen accompanied by their moons. The sky was beautiful to look at; it consisted of pinks, oranges, reds and greens as the star and sunlight lit up the gaseous heavenly body. Remembering back to her days before her village was attacked, amongst the stars, the Andromeda galaxy and a couple of large gaseous nebulas could be seen in the night sky. She was clearly within one of them.

"_Better see where this goes_," she thought to herself beginning to pick her way across the fragile stones. Skeletons rose from the ground on her way but she simply smashed them with her sword; they were of no threat to her. Eventually, she reached the structure on the other side of the 'room' seeing that it was actually a tunnel through some rocks that made up the towering mountainous structure.  
Upon entering, she was unchallenged and carefully made her way down the winding tunnel on the lookout for traps, lighting torches along the way so she could see better.

Eventually, the tunnel came out back into open air where she was greeted by more skeletons, again disposing of them with ease. As she looked around the otherworldly terrain, something caught her eye; it looked like some kind of throne room!

"What are you doing here?" A voice demanded unexpectedly as Rynn walked into the small roofless marble walled room. Startled, she looked over to her left to see a large skeletal humanoid being standing up from his throne and beginning to walk towards her. Rynn did not show any signs of fear; it looked like one of the regular skeletons she had encountered although slightly larger.  
Before Rynn could speak the figure spoke again. "I thought Zola Dane had taken care of you and your dragon... Hmm. I knew I shouldn't have trusted him."  
"Who are you" Rynn questioned. She had a slight inclination that the figure was Gothraul but she wanted confirmation and any information she could get from him.

"I am Gothraul, lord of the ghouls. You are trespassing in my realm" he spoke slowly and with a tone of voice that made Rynn's skin crawl. Shuddering she gave her reason for being there wanting to leave as soon as possible. "I came by accident actually. I wasn't looking for you, I was after Zola Dane; a teleporter in the Sanguinade led me here."  
Gothraul gave a loud ghostly laugh. "Seems you are out of luck. He has been and gone, most probably up to Stratos." There was a slight pause and he continued "I am wanting that man dead myself."  
"Really?" Rynn said sarcastically. "Then maybe we could help each other."  
"Hah! Not likely" Gothraul snapped. "As much as we both dislike him, I would rather kill you instead. Arokh and the Order has been a thorn in the Dark Union's side since it began. Now I have the Desert Lords to contend with as well."

Shocked by hearing that Gothraul was allied with Navaros and a member of the Dark Union, Rynn stepped backwards; a wave of anger and sadness coming over her as she remembered her brother's tragic death.  
"So, you and the Desert Lords are enemies? I thought the remnants of the Dark Union and the Desert Lords were allies" Rynn asked, surprised at his reply.  
"No, no. We are, lets say neutral to each other but both of us do not want the Order of the Flame returning to the world. So, I agreed with Jassad to help them stop Lady Myschala and Arokh's plans in return for... well, that does not matter now."  
"Oh" Rynn said quietly. "Suppose you want to kill me now?" She continued with a smirk.

Gothraul gave another laugh. "I like your sense of humour, girl. But, you are correct; you obviously do not want to give up and go home. You must die."  
Rynn equipped the tempest blade, as it was the most powerful sword she possessed. The Mournbringer did not return life when used against the undead and it was much heavier than the tempest. Gothraul went into a fighting stance and two blades materialised in each hand.  
Rynn swallowed at the sight of the two blades and ran straight at him to make the first strike. The tempest cut into the ancient bones slicing one of the arms off in one blow. Both of them were surprised at the outcome of the blow and Gothraul was momentarily stunned. Taking advantage of this, Rynn ran around him and cut off the other arm so that he could not attack.

She stepped back and Gothraul stumbled and fell to the floor facing her. "I did not know I would be so frail" he gasped. "No-one has ever tried to destroy me for the last 600 years, I have grown weak."  
Rynn grinned broadly. "Maybe you should have thought of that before you attacked me."  
Gothraul gasped again. "I suppose I might as well help you... There is a key on the armrest of my throne; it will open the door to the upper level of the Sanguinade. There you can escape."

"Now that's better," Rynn said placing her hands on her hips. "There is one problem though; how do I know you will not call legions of the undead after me once I have left? Assuming I let you live that is."  
"I won't, trust me" Gothraul continued.  
Rynn did not trust the skeletal being. She was going to ask him how to disable the laser traps but she felt that he would probably lead her into a trap. He had failed at killing her personally but there was an almost unlimited undead force that could do the work for him.

Rynn smiled at him and went to collect the key. She walked back past him cutting off his head as she went; there was no way she would walk out of there without destroying him. As Rynn walked through the teleporter returning her back to the Sanguinade, the skeletons and bone dragons that had been summoned collapsed and disintegrated making the trip to Stratos much easier.

Chapter Twenty Three: Enemy at the Gates 

It was a good hour later when Rynn finally reached the other side of the barrier blocking the entrance. She could see Arokh waiting outside looking outwards back towards the Desert.  
"Arokh!" She shouted, grateful of the sight of her companion but there was still the humming barrier between them. The dragon turned and a pleasing smile appeared on his maw when his eyes spotted her.  
"Been a while haven't you?" He greeted her shouting over the humming of the barriers.  
"Don't ask" Rynn shouted back turning her attention to disabling the barriers. She had fought many of the soulless during her escapades through the ruined building looking for a way to reach the front entrance. The Sanguinade consisted of many rooms and halls interconnected like a vast maze and some were impassable due to either locked doors or fallen debris.

"Now how do I turn these off?" She wondered looking around the giant hallway for a switch or lever. Whoever activated them must have used magic and she was beginning to suspect the only way of disabling them would be via the same way until she finally found the answer.  
The barrier consisted of three beams about half a meter apart above each other stretching from one side of the hallway to the other and almost reaching the ceiling. There was another identical set just behind towards Arokh with a space in between them. She could just make out two alcoves in the wall in the space between the two barriers but at first there was no way to slide under the beams without being hit.

"Great" Rynn mumbled to herself.  
"What's the matter?" Arokh asked walking closer to the beams as far as he dared.  
"The switches are in between the beams but I can't reach them" Rynn pointed out sitting down on a fallen stone.

Arokh looked into the hallway seeing nothing that immediately came to mind and drew his gaze to his bonded who was still sat on the stone.  
"Rynn. Can you push the stone you are sat on into the beam? If you could it would block it enabling you to slide underneath and reach the switches."  
"Of course!" Rynn exclaimed. "How could I have missed that?"

Arokh shook his head and watched her struggle with the heavy stone. Fortunately for Rynn, the sand covered floor tiles made sliding it a little easier. Finally, after much cursing and struggling, the lowest beam hit the stone heating it at an alarming rate; it even began to glow as it absorbed the energy beam. Rynn knew she had little time and crawled into the space between the two sets of beams just as the stone block exploded enabling the beam to reach the other side. The switches had better work or she was trapped...

The moment Rynn pressed the first switch, about twenty soulless appeared in the hallway and closed in on her but she was still protected by the beams. A few stupidly ran into the beams killing them instantly whilst the rest waited for her to drop the second set of beams.  
"Arokh! The moment the barrier is down, flame them!" Rynn shouted. The dragon nodded in reply and Rynn ran to the opposite alcove and reached out for the switch whilst keeping her eyes on the group of soulless. A loud grating noise of stone upon stone sounded as the switch depressed into the wall. The humming stopped and with a scream, the crowd began to advance on her but Arokh was much quicker dousing them in a cloud of deadly flame.

"Am I glad to see you!" Rynn said thankfully, putting her arms around the dragon's neck to hug him. "Honestly I don't know what I would do without you."  
Arokh grunted in reply and nervously looked around the hallway as he heard distant cries of the soulless. "We must go Rynn before any more turn up. Have you any idea where this tunnel leads?" He asked pointing to the huge entrance ahead of them with an outstretched foreleg.  
"No" Rynn said stepping away from the dragon. "But I have searched everywhere. It must lead up to Stratos eventually; remember what Perry's father told us about the floating platform that is used as a lift to the Desert Lord's city?"  
"I remember" Arokh replied. "We have no time to return to Surdana for supplies now, we will have to make do with what we have."  
"I have enough health potions and I found one invulnerability potion in the ruins. Just stay with me and don't fly off" She said walking to his side to mount him.  
"Ill try not to" he grunted and began to walk into the tunnel.

The tunnel soon changed from man made stone to sold rock as it led from the ancient structure and into the mountain. The two walked in silence; Rynn did not have anything to say and Arokh was not one for making idle chitchat, he liked to be alone with his thoughts sometimes.

"It looks like there is an open topped cavern ahead" the dragon noted breaking the silence first. He paused momentarily whilst Rynn glanced ahead seeing a large basin like cavern full of rocky platforms, stalagmites and stalactites. At the top were several holes where the strong sunlight shone through from above. As they came closer, she could see several green doors set into alcoves along the walls with a gold trim and a decorative window set into them near the top.

"Strange place" Rynn whispered.  
"It looks like we are reaching the beginning of the Desert Lords territory. Their decor and buildings are similar to what was found in the Middle East on the planet Earth" Arokh continued starting to walk forward again.  
"Planet Earth?" Rynn questioned; surprised that there was another planet in the Drakan solar system she had not heard of before.  
Arokh turned his head round and regarded her with a smile and a twinkle shone in his eye where the torchlight caught it.  
"Many wonders of the Golden Age" he said quietly. There was a slight pause whilst the dragon dug up more memories from the Order's distant past and continued. "Earth is another planet populated mainly by humans. Its more or less on the other side of the galaxy Drakan and the sun resides in; we managed to open a portal there long ago. Needless to say, it turned out to be a bad idea and the portal was destroyed."

"Go on, I'm interested" Rynn encouraged nudging his side.  
The dragon sighed. "Navaros came from there."  
"What?" Rynn exclaimed in horror.  
The dragon laughed. "Oh a long story. We learned that there were dragons on that planet who were being made rapidly extinct by the human population. We brought back about eight with us along with a selected few humans who vowed to protect them. You see the people of Earth saw them as evil creatures and employed dragonslayers to rid the world of them; which I would imagine by now they have." Arokh stopped again to take a breath. "Navaros was a simple man, possessing no magical abilities. But, misfortune and a sad turn of events turned him into a powerful necromancer. Navaros was not his real name either."

Both were silent for a few minutes whilst Rynn took this in. Eventually she spoke first. "There's more isn't there? Are you one of the dragons from Earth?"  
"Hah! No, I'm not" Arokh snapped. "As far as I know, Navaros employed them in the Dark Union and they were slain in the war. No, there is nothing else; it's all in the past now. We must think about saving our own race, not anyone else's."  
With that, Arokh walked out of the tunnel and into the open cavern.

No sooner had they emerged from the tunnel, a couple of familiar shrieks reminded them that danger lurked nearby in the form of half eagle, half lion winged death.  
"Griffins. Again" Arokh whispered backing into the tunnel. A blast of energy hit the ground where he had been stood melting the sand with the instantaneous heat radiated by the blast.  
The lower half of their attacker hovered just below the tunnel entrance and Arokh shot a retaliatory strike at it making the beast cry out in pain.

"I have an idea" Arokh noted backing further into the tunnel. "I can hit them from here if we are patient and we will be quite safe from their attacks. The blast radius from their breath weapon is very small; they need a direct hit to be able to harm us."  
"Okay" Rynn mumbled reaching for some health potions just in case.

Again, one of the griffins was partially exposed in the tunnel mouth and Arokh hit it with a sonic blast throwing the creature to the floor stunning it for a few moments. He soon finished it off with his flame breath and turned his attention to one of the others.  
"If we continue like this, we should have them in no time. As long as they don't try and follow us we should be okay" Arokh said confidently.  
"I could help" Rynn pointed out readying the Bow of the Order.  
"Well then, help" Arokh grunted firing another sonic blast at a griffin that had strayed too close.

It took a long time to clear out the cavern using their tactic of hiding in the tunnel but it wasn't worth the risk of diving in and being rapidly overwhelmed. The old dragon knew his limits and what he could and could not defeat face to face. They flew around the cavern for a while finding numerous transportation and storage crates bound for Stratos stacked against walls and in walkways. There was no weapons of any use to be found and most were filled with Grimstone, the same substance used to create the gateway into the rift through which Rynn's brother was taken.

All of the green coloured doors were locked and there didn't seem to be any way of opening them. As they followed the path around the cavern trying each door in turn, Arokh suddenly stopped outside a much larger door and froze solid.  
"What's the matter?" His companion asked.  
"Look" Arokh snarled pointing to the centre of the door. "The symbol of the Order!"  
Slowly Rynn realised why the dragon was so surprised to see the long forgotten symbol; they were deep inside the former Dark Union's lands, now occupied by the Desert Lords.  
"Why would a door with the Order's symbol on it be here?" Rynn asked. "What do you suppose is beyond it?"

"I don't know" Arokh frowned. "But there must have been something here at one point, I can't really remember. I would imagine this door was within the ruins; it is stone after all."  
"Something important must be at the other side; its the only stone door here and one large enough for you to fit through" she said slipping down from the dragon's back. "Ill see if it's open."

"Locked" Rynn said in disappointment as she tried the door lever. "Come on, there is one more door to try, back towards we came in."  
"Somehow I have the feeling we aren't going to get in this way" Arokh replied looking up through the hole in the cavern roof. "Up there seems to be the only way out."  
Rynn gazed up at the hole where the sunlight shone through creating streams of golden light illuminating the semi dark cavern. "No" she disagreed. "Let's try the last one anyway."  
Arokh sighed and followed behind on the narrow path as Rynn ran to the last remaining door heart beating in anticipation. The platform going up to Stratos must be close.

"There! What did I tell you?" She said with a smile as the green door swung open revealing a stone corridor brightly lit by magical crystal wall lights. Arokh grinned back. "Ill wait here, come back and tell me what you find."  
Rynn nodded and walked into the corridor turning around to look at her bonded but the door slammed shut and automatically locked as if by some force.  
"Arokh! I'm trapped I can't open it from here" She shouted in alarm pushing at the door and surrounding stones. A few loud thuds came from the other side as Arokh tried to force it open. "No good Rynn, you will have to find an alternative way out. Ill watch your back and make sure nobody follows you."  
"Great!" She muttered to herself and looked around to get aquatinted with her new surroundings.

Cushions and seating were placed at intervals down the long hallway and ancient stone vases decorated the walls set into recesses in the wall. There were even flowers in some of them - fresh ones at that.

"I wouldn't have thought the Desert Lords would be interested in flowers" she muttered to herself as she reached the end of the corridor. There was a small room at the end with a central foliage and floral arrangement surrounded by a low wall. More of the golden couches and chairs were set against the wall with their red cushions. Above there was a large chandelier fastened to a crystal ceiling glowing with all sorts of colours. The entire place seemed like a rich king's palace rather than the homelands of the evil Desert Lords.

"Where did they get all of this stuff?" She wondered taking another corridor that branched off the room. Distant cries of the soulless were heard and she decided to move quickly especially seem as Arokh could not help. Her good sense of direction led her through the labyrinth like system towards the door with the Order's symbol she and Arokh saw earlier. It was the only logical way to reach this so called lift to Stratos; if they were taking supplies up there, it was unlikely they would take them through the corridor system, rather using the large door to take the crates through.

Eventually, after meeting little resistance, Rynn reached a long open chasm where another tunnel could be seen at the other side but there was no way across. The chasm seemed to be full of glittering lights that shone and sparkled in the infinite darkness below. A couple of soulless taunted her from the other side but they sensibly stayed put; seemingly even they knew she couldn't reach them.

"_There must be another way_," she thought peering around in the darkness for the area was not as well lit as the rooms and corridors behind her.  
"Are you looking for the bridge?" A soft female human voice came from behind her. Startled, Rynn turned round to see a well tanned woman slightly older than her stood at the doorway.

"What?... Er.. Yeah. You are?" Rynn stuttered, surprised that she was not the only human in there. She had no weapons and wore a simple robe and held a bunch of flowers in her hand.  
"I am one of the brides," she said softly.  
"Brides!" Rynn exclaimed. "Brides for whom?"  
"The Flesh Mage. Do you not know?" The woman answered. "Oh I am looking forward to the wedding!"  
"Flesh Mage?" Rynn said loudly as an eerie feeling came over her. The woman appeared dazed, as if some kind of trance.  
"You must have missed the ceremony dressed like that. There will be the next batch of brides along in an hour. You can go along if you like."  
"No thanks, I think Ill pass." Rynn mumbled resting a shoulder on the wall. "What about this bridge?"

The woman giggled and pointed to a cave high up on the wall where a lever could be seen. "That lever controls the bridge, that tunnel over there will take you up to it" the woman said pointing into a pitched black corner.  
"I don't see anything" Rynn said quietly, her voice drifting off when she realised the woman had suddenly gone.  
"_The woman must have been one of the captured humans" _she wondered to herself. It looked to her that the men were enslaved and the women treat like royalty, what for was anyone's guess.

There was a tunnel in the cave like she had been told and the young warrior carefully made her way upwards towards the lever absently killing the soulless that was in the room at the top. Standing by the lever, she saw that she was overlooking the chasm below seeing nothing that remotely resembled a raised bridge. Shrugging, she pulled the lever and to her surprise, the lights began to arrange themselves into the shape of a bridge crossing the chasm. "I think there was something similar in the Volcano" she mused remembering her fateful quest to save her brother. She wiped away a tear as the thought came back more vivid than before, she could not get the image of Delon falling to his death out of her head.

Rynn made her way back down to where she had met the woman earlier and instead of a deep chasm in front of her; there was now a glittering walkway. The two soulless leapt onto the bridge and come running towards her, obviously the lights could hold her weight. Cautiously, Rynn stepped onto the bridge of light and began to walk forward. There was no sound as her footsteps touched the 'solid' air underneath her and she could not feel her feet touch solid ground. It was a weird feeling, like walking on a vast carpet of cotton wool.

The soulless were soon no longer a threat to her as she ran them through with the Mournbringer rewarding her with health as each one died. Swallowing hard she looked into the corridor ahead; at the end, a floating platform could be seen hovering inches from the floor.  
"That's it!" She exclaimed running into the room. A quick glance to her right revealed the other side of the stone door seen earlier. She knew Arokh was waiting on the other side. All she had to do was reach the lever by the door.

"Not so fast girl!" A familiar voice came from nearby.  
"You!" Rynn snarled setting eyes on the traitor wizard once more. She had almost died twice at the hands of his magic in the last day.  
"What does it take for you to die?" Zola Dane said angrily. "How did you get past Shaza and Tora? Hmm?"  
Rynn gritted her teeth and went into a fighting stance holding the Mournbringer firmly in her hands.  
"You don't need to know that. But I can say that you have greatly underestimated me and Arokh."  
Zola drew his face into a scornful smirk. "You make me laugh. You are useless on your own and there is no dragon here to save you. Its time you were finished. Forever."  
Lowering her sword, Rynn wanted more out of the wizard before she killed him. "Tell me one thing Zola. Why did you do it?"

"Power. The Desert Lords are a superior race and they have promised me much..."  
"At the cost of your humanity?" Rynn snapped cutting him off. Zola just continued his scornful smile. "Humans soon will be history. I do not want to be part of a world where the strong bow down before the weak. No, I made the right choice."  
Rynn shook her head slowly. "You leave me little choice. Surrender now or you will die."  
"I doubt it somehow" Zola laughed scornfully and began casting a spell. Rynn quickly rolled out of the way and moved in for melee combat.

Rynn noticed that Zola was not wearing any armour of any kind or carrying any weapons; a foolish thing to do so it would seem. Rynn grimaced at him and lashed out with the Mournbringer cutting into him just below the shoulders, blood flowing freely down his side. "_He is human after all_," Rynn thought to herself dodging another attack. As she moved in for another strike, she felt herself immobilised lifted up off the ground and then thrown into the cave wall knocking the breath out of her.

"See, the mind is mightier than the sword" he laughed walking over to where Rynn laid on the ground nursing her leg where it had struck the wall. Getting to her feet she put her hands up to protect herself as Zola prepared for another attack; she knew he would easily throw her into the chasm behind and that would mean certain death.  
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the energy blast coming towards her and instinctively ducked and rolled towards him out of harms way. Now was the chance to get another attack in; she did not want to give him time to heal himself so she thrust her sword upwards into his gut.  
There was a loud gasp of pain and Zola stumbled backwards clutching his stomach, blood leaking through his fingers.

"You are good girl, but not good enough" Zola continued to taunt.  
"What you want some more do you? Well, seem as I'm so good; ill give you another chance. Surrender now and Ill make sure Lady Myschala does not have you executed for your crimes. If not, you die now" Rynn answered edging around the wall towards the large stone door.  
Zola cast a quick glance to the door knowing that Arokh was at the other side, there was no way he would reach Rynn before she pulled that lever. He didn't want to face Arokh for death would come swiftly and painfully.  
"See you at the top" he sniggered and began running for the platform.  
"No you don't! You are not getting away this time," she yelled after him concentrating hard to bring forth the fireball spell.

"Concentrate Rynn. Concentrate, this is my only chance" she whispered to herself momentarily closing her eyes. When she opened them again, a neat ball of flame sat in her palms. One quick reflex later, Zola Dane fell to the floor, his back aflame. Not waiting for him to recover, Rynn ran up to him and finished him off with the Mournbringer. A sudden wave of relief went through her, as she knew the only thing that needed to be disposed of was Jassad. It would be a much harder battle but she had defeated Navaros and was confident of herself and Arokh to finish their mission successfully.

"Rynn. You alright?" Came a muffled draconic voice from nearby.  
"Arokh!" Rynn shouted in relief and ran over to the door lever pulling the ancient wooden handle hoping it would not break. A short moment later, the door retracted into the roof and locked home with a satisfying crash.

The dragon sauntered into the room as if he had all the time in the world and glanced at the remains of Zola Dane.  
"I'm glad to see the back of him" he growled. "Well done Rynn."  
"Oh, he was easy" Rynn laughed walking over to the platform. "This must be the lift that goes to Stratos," she said pointing with a finger at the hovering platform. Above it, daylight poured through a hole in the cave roof through which the platform went up to its journey to the clouds where the Desert Lords ruled from their floating islands.  
"Yes, that's it. We should go now, unless" Arokh said clearly nervously looking behind him.  
"Unless what?" Rynn queried.

"Come here Rynn" Arokh beckoned. Rynn obeyed and stood by his side, she could feel that he was nervous and worried about their destiny. The dragon cleared his throat and continued "What we will face up there will be the elite of Jassad's forces. Now that he knows we are here, he will throw everything he has at us. It will not be easy. Are you sure you are up to the task? Because if not, now is the time to speak. Once we start our journey to Stratos, there will be no turning back."

Rynn paused for a moment like she did when Arokh first warned her about the bonding ritual and that if he was killed, she would become a soul shadow. She was certain then and she was certain now.  
"Are you ready?" She said confidently.  
The dragon turned his head to look at her and she stared into his eyes. "Of course" he said with a smile.  
"Then lets do it" Rynn stated walking towards the platform stopping to see if Arokh was following. He stared at the ground and sighed then caught up with her stopping by the edge of the platform.

"You first" he said waving her on but instead she stepped back towards him and put her arms around his neck.  
"Whatever happens to us up there, you know just in case we fail, I want you to know that I love you" Rynn stuttered as a lump formed in her throat through sheer emotional stress.  
"I know" Arokh whispered softly putting one of his forelegs around her to pull her closer. "I now feel the same about you. Don't worry about what is up there, we will pull through, we always do. You won't fail, I won't fail. I promise."  
"Yeah, I'm sure we will. One more thing; promise you will never abandon me" Rynn said quieter and through tears, her throat was becoming dry. She didn't want to burst into tears now, not in front of Arokh although she knew he would understand if she did.

Arokh laughed gently. "Of course I won't. We will always be together, we are family now. It will be very difficult in the first few months of the New Order's rule whilst Lady Myschala and I prepare and organise everything. I can't say ill be around all the time but Ill try my best."  
"Okay" Rynn sniffed pressing her face into his neck to kiss it. The feeling of lust came back over her again in a wave as she stepped back to look into his eye. "Ill do something special for you… a personal favour when this is over" she said with a smile.  
"Special?" Arokh wondered then muttered a short "oh" when he realised what she meant and his jaws drew into a wide grin and nodded. "Ill look forward to that."

Rynn just laughed and together they walked onto the platform, it immediately beginning its ascent taking them to the final showdown against Jassad.

Epilogue 

And so the story draws to a close. Rynn and Arokh achieved their goal through long and brutal battles against Jassad's forces and Jassad himself. The Flesh Mage was one of the hardest battles Rynn had to win single handed, as his palace was deep in the bowels of an island where Arokh was unable to reach. The Flesh Mage had been using a mind trick spell to trick female humans into thinking that they were to be married to their perfect partner and would live a life in luxury in the Mage's palace. Of course, this was not its true intention; the Flesh Mage had gone insane wanting to strip the skins of humans purely to keep them as trophies. He had a vat of preserving liquid where faces of his so-called 'brides' floated on the surface. The sight and smell of the place was almost enough to make Rynn turn back but she battled on eventually destroying his soul jar freeing his true good spirit.

Jassad himself hid within his own palace protected by countless Elder Breed dragons cloned from Shaza and Tora and many griffins. Through luck and pure exceptional combat abilities, Arokh carried his rider forward into the palace for the final confrontation. Jassad hid inside the pain Golem, an abomination of stone and mud, which grew inside the palace shattering it around them revealing the fourth gate. Rynn managed to severely injure Jassad but it was Arokh who finished off the pain Golem, Jassad's life and reign ended by the thing toppling and falling on him. With the remainder of Jassad's forces decimated and no longer a real threat, Arokh activated the final gate and back in Surdana, the spirit of Mala Shae, the Dragon Mother hung over the city like a white ghost.

Shortly after Rynn and Arokh's return to Surdana, the first of the Elder Breed were brought back into the world through Mala Shae's magic. Far away in their lairs, the dragons awoke and flocked to Surdana to meet their new leaders. It was decided that only the dragons who were previously bonded should be awakened first as they were loyal to the Order and were the finest fighters. A couple of weeks later, the last of the Desert Lords were eradicated and their city of Stratos toppled from the sky freeing the humans from their lives of slavery. The bestial armies of the Wartocks and Grull, loyal to both the Dark Union and the Desert Lords were driven back to their homelands and for the first time, the people of Surdana could enjoy life without the threat of warfare.  
Arokh finally officially got his lordship and became the leader of the Order's dragons, his and Rynn's place secured in the high command of the Order.

In the few months that followed, the remainder of the dragons was awakened and many chose to join the New Order, bonding with Surdana's knights. Rigorous training was set up overseen by Rynn and Arokh as they were regarded as heroes and classed as the most superior and respected members of the Order. Their skills had to be passed on to create the most elite front line fighting force the Order had seen throughout its history. Lady Myschala was still not keen on Rynn due to her attitude but however, Rynn soon put her peasant village life behind her and began to adjust. She had learnt a lot of manners from the noble Arokh and quickly began to fit in with the high-ranking members of the Order.

Within time, the New Order grew, building new cities and spreading throughout the central continent sowing the seeds of a new civilisation as they went. As Arokh had suggested, the Order did not spread to other continents, keeping their affairs and philosophies local. Trying to rule a whole world would just lead them to another apocalyptic disaster where people like Navaros would form groups that opposed them. Finally, after six centuries of misery, death and destruction, the human and Dragon races could begin rebuilding their world and restoring it to its former glory. Arokh would go down in history as the one to save the world twice over. A statue of him and Rynn was erected in Surdana's city square as a reminder of their heroism for generations to come.

**The End**

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P.S. A big thank you to all who contributed, I would have never completed this work if it weren't for you few people.


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